You were born in California and have lived in Arizona and probably some other very warm places. How did you end up in Northwest Ohio?
That's where Bluffton University happens to be. I came here for the opportunity to work on the campus, not for the weather or the scenery. If only I could convince the trustees to relocate it to the Southwest...
Where does the nickname "Tig" come from? Does anyone call you Stephen?
Let's just say I've had it since I was in 2nd grade. If you want to know the etymology of it, I might tell you in person. The people who call me Stephen are basically one of my brothers, my banker, and telemarketers.
Tell me about your childhood -- family, sibs, school, music, sports.
My parents are both Italian and were raised in Connecticut. After they got married and had their first 4 children, they moved the family across the country to the Los Angeles area, where they had 4 more children. I'm number 3, and I was 5 when we moved to California. After having 7 boys, my parents finally got the girl they wanted, then decided that was enough children. I was raised in the Catholic tradition, and served as an altar boy in middle school. Most of us kids went to public school, though my oldest brother thought he wanted to be a priest so went to high school at a Franciscan seminary in Santa Barbara.
My childhood was great. We lived in a surburban area and there were lots of kids in the neighborhood and lots of fields and hills to explore. We played outside constantly year-round (without ever putting on boots or mittens, and rarely even jackets!). We caught lots of lizards, snakes and frogs. Once we caught a skunk, put it in a box and brought it home to ask our parents if we could keep it (after getting it de-scented, of course). Not a good idea, but it's fun to look back on.
I loved Little League baseball and also was in boy scouts (didn't quite make Eagle scout, though). In the summers we spent every day hanging out with friends at the beach. I learned to surf with a board, but did mostly bodysurfing.
Like lots of kids, middle school could be brutal at times, but high school was a great experience. I played football, wrestled, and was in choir and musicals. My biggest part was playing Sancho Panza in Man of La Mancha my senior year. I made a lot of friends in high school that I remain friends with today. I try to make it back to my class reunions every 5 years.
Where did you earn your degree in theology (or whatever it is)? Were you a church pastor before coming to Bluffton?
I got my undergraduate degree at UCLA in psychology and teaching. After spending a couple of years in Mennonite Voluntary Service in Colorado, Karen and I got married and signed up to work with the Mennonite Board of Missions in Bolivia. They sent us to AMBS (the Mennonite seminary in Elkhart, Ind.) to study for a year before heading to Bolivia. Then after returning from Bolivia 8 years later, I finished my Master of Divinity degree at AMBS. I also studied for a year at Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, CA in between terms in Bolivia.
Who was the first person you met in Bluffton?
I had met a couple of Admissions Counselors at youth retreats in Arizona--Eric Schlabach and Jenelle Musselman. But the first person I met when I interviewed for the campus pastor position was probably Eric Fulcomer.
What do you enjoy most about being campus pastor? Where do you find the energy to keep up with all those college students?
I love lots of things about my job. I really enjoy mentoring and encouraging Hall Chaplains and other student leaders and then watching them grow as they discover their gifts and passions and live them out as they serve our campus. I also love just hanging out in the Marbeck Commons during lunch and having fun talking with students, staff and faculty. And since I like meeting new people, I look forward to summer orientations when I get to meet the new students. Serving as the advisor for the Shining Through ministry team is also a definite highlight of my job. I think I have so much energy because I love what I'm doing so much.
Are you Italian? I saw some photos of you in the kitchen - it appears you are cooking. What's your specialty?
I'm 100% Italian and proud of it. I was the only one of us 7 boys who took an interest in the kitchen growing up, so my mom taught me how to make spaghetti sauce and different kinds of dishes using that sauce. My specialty is probably manicotti--I make my own shells and use lots of ricotta cheese.
What are some of your interests, hobbies, things you like to do in your free time...if you have any free time? Do you sing and act? I think I've seen some photos of you doing both.
My wife and I are trying to eat less meat, so one of my current hobbies is learning to cook different vegetarian dishes. During the school year I am pretty much absorbed with campus activities and don't have time for much else. I love to travel and spend time with my family, which often involves traveling-- we have a son, Andrew, and his wife, Diana, in Washington, DC, and another son, Lucas, and his wife, Jill, in La Paz, Bolivia. All of my side of the family still lives in California, so I try to get out there to see them when I can.
Last summer I was in The Wizard of Oz with the Riley Creek Singers, which was my first official time on stage since high school. I really enjoyed myself, and played 5 different roles--probably spent more time changing costumes than on stage. I also have joined the Gospel Choir here on campus and that's not only worshipful but a lot of fun!
You have a very cute little dog. What is his/her name and what kind of dog is he/she?
His name is Binky and he's a peek-a-poo. "Happiest dog in the neighborhood", to quote one of our neighbors. He loves being taken on walks around the two lakes in town.
How did you and your wife meet?
Karen and I met in Denver while in Mennonite Voluntary Service. She's from Berne, Ind., so is enjoying living a little closer to her home area.
I think you and your wife did some sort of voluntary service in another country. Was it Bolivia? Is that when you learned Spanish or did you speak that before? Tell me about your years there.
Yes, we served in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, in the 80's and early 90's. The mission board graciously sent us to Costa Rica for a year of Spanish language study before going to Bolivia.
In Bolivia, we helped train and encourage leaders in the Bolivian Mennonite Church congregations. We also did holistic ministry together with some volunteers with Mennonite Central Committee in a marginal neighborhood of the city. Out of that ministry we helped plant a new Mennonite church. Our children were born and raised for the first part of their lives in that neighborhood and it was an amazing experience for all of us. It's great that now that I'm at Bluffton, I am able to lead cross-cultural experiences to Bolivia and stay connected to our Bolivian friends.
Tell me about your family... Karen and your children. Emily is the only one who attended Bluffton High School. Where do the others live and work?
Karen is a speech pathologist and works at two schools in the Lima area. Emily is our youngest and is studying accounting at Ashland University; Lucas studied and played golf at University of Findlay before marrying Jill (a Bluffton University grad he met on a cross-cultural trip I led to Bolivia) ; Andrew studied at Eastern Mennonite University where he met his wife, Diana, and he is currently doing an internship in Alexandria, Va., to finish his degree in school psychology through James Madison University.
What do you think you'll be doing in 10 years from now?
My hope is that I will still be doing what I'm doing now at the university, though you never know what the future holds. And by then I will be close to retirement age, so maybe I will find my way back to the southwest someday. I also hope to be a grandpa by then, though I have no control over that or anything else. For now, I'm just trying to enjoy all that God has blessed me with and live each day with gratitude and joy.
