Who are the Wild Hope Fellows?
Created in 2014, the Wild Hope Fellows program aims to nurture a yearly cohort of students who will study various perspectives on vocation and then undertake projects in the university that welcome students into thoughtful reflection on leading lives of meaning and purpose, now and when they graduate.
Each spring semester candidates are nominated by members of the Center for Vocation Steering Committee. The nominees are then invited to apply and interview for the fellowship. Those who are selected meet weekly with Wild Hope leaders, Dr. Antonios Finitsis (Religion), and Ms. Laree Winer (Student Life) to learn collaboratively about the origins, meaning, and practice of vocation at PLU. Wild Hope Fellows receive a stipend of $1000 for their participation in the cohort.
As Fellows meet throughout the year, they should find themselves understanding rich and varied views of vocation; be able to describe and critically question Lutheran perspectives on vocation; recognize how PLU’s commitment to vocation supports its educational mission; demonstrate practical skills that nourish reflection on vocation (e.g., appreciative listening; silence; meditation); discuss vocation with other students; and serve as public representatives of the Center for Vocation at university events.
The Center for Vocation welcomes the eighth cohort of Fellows for the 2022-23 academic year.
Meet the 2022-23 Fellows
What is the value of being a Wild Hope Fellow? Why should others think about being a fellow?
It is important to have a group of people to share sources with and understand what the meaning of vocation is and how to understand yours. It is something hard to find and reflect upon, but reflection can be found throughout a community which is also why it is significant to have that sense of community.
How does what you are studying relate to your sense of purpose or your calling in the world?
My calling in the world is to work with teenagers and people of my community. I am specifically going into the juvenile justice system to work with teens of color.
The Wild Hope Center strives to promote human and ecological flourishing. What does this mean to you? How do you see yourself contributing to human and ecological flourishing not just for yourself but for others and/or the earth?
Going back to finding vocation and passion, and within reflection of community, helps people flourish. In terms of ecological flourishing, it is all interconnected, meaning that once we flourish, we can help both each other and the space that we are living in. I see flourishing in the community. Surrounding community not only helps me in my vocation but has also assisted me into getting to where I am now.
What is the value of being a Wild Hope Fellow? Why should others think about being a fellow?
Being a fellow allows one to think deeper about who we are and what we are called to do as human beings. Vocation ties into the idea of finding purpose whatever that may be. It is important that we ask ourselves questions that we may be afraid to ask. Questions that are foundational and how we structure the rest of our lives.
How does what you are studying relate to your sense of purpose or your calling in the world?
At its core, I am called to a life of education and music gets to something very deep inside of people that is difficult to put into words. When one sings out into the world, it’s a gift and it is always cultivating. To sum it up, I would say that there is no meat without music, in other words, there is no me outside of music.
The Wild Hope Center strives to promote human and ecological flourishing. What does this mean to you? How do you see yourself contributing to human and ecological flourishing not just for yourself but for others and/or the earth?
This foundation helps to establish work on people on an individual and landscape level. In order to help the world and environment around us, we have to start with ourselves and break down the components within us. Once we pull out these questions, we can begin thinking about this. The more I can better equip people to embrace the world, the more we can all make the world a better place.
What is the value of being a Wild Hope Fellow? Why should others think about being a fellow?
The value of being a Wild Hope Fellow is being able to be in a space to discuss meaning and supportiveness, especially as a college student not knowing our calling, it is helpful to have such a space.
How does what you are studying relate to your sense of purpose or your calling in the world?
For me, I am really into communities and decisions made in communities, therefore what I am studying helps me better understand how people make those decisions.
The Wild Hope Center strives to promote human and ecological flourishing. What does this mean to you? How do you see yourself contributing to human and ecological flourishing not just for yourself but for others and/or the earth?
Promoting human and ecological flourishing is looking critically at our place and habitats and challenging systems that don’t do this in ways that we feel called to in our community. I try to find it in both academic and work in community places where I can bring in approaches to complex problems and by being able to listen to different approaches in my own work. Some examples of these approaches are being involved in student government, being able to be in touch with students of different backgrounds and this allows different ways to connect with various students.
What is the value of being a Wild Hope Fellow? Why should others think about being a fellow?
As a Wild Hope Fellow, I have the opportunity to pause and reflect about my life’s purpose, and apply this reflection to the path I am currently on. I think this is important as a college student, because time seems to move so fast. Others should think about being a fellow because this is such a unique opportunity to reflect on the vocation and meaning in a collaborative community setting.
How does what you are studying relate to your sense of purpose or your calling in the world?
By studying Philosophy, GSRS, and NAIS, I am learning how to think deeply and ask critical questions. These skill sets connect to my goal to attend law school after my years at PLU-though I am still figuring out my purpose and calling in the world, I know it will involve advocacy and storytelling.
The Wild Hope Center strives to promote human and ecological flourishing. What does this mean to you? How do you see yourself contributing to human and ecological flourishing not just for yourself but for others and/or the earth?
I think that the Wild Hope Center fellows and students start their journey of vocational discernment, which in turn, allows students to find their own unique way to promote human and ecological flourishing. I see myself contributing to human flourishing by being a storyteller, advocate, and caring community member wherever I end up.
What is the value of being a Wild Hope Fellow? Why should others think about being a fellow?
I think that being a fellow can help articulate one’s vocation which would make action easier and more directed and powerful, even if you cannot articulate your vocation yet, you would at least have a more directed feeling towards something. Everybody has some passion that can be used to serve the world.
How does what you are studying relate to your sense of purpose or your calling in the world?
I am studying Mathematics because I enjoy the study of logic, however, I am also leaning into Environmental Studies because I focus on animals and I hope to promote fellow animals in my life.
The Wild Hope Center strives to promote human and ecological flourishing. What does this mean to you? How do you see yourself contributing to human and ecological flourishing not just for yourself but for others and/or the earth?
To me, the “promotion of human and ecological flourishing” means the celebration of diversity of the world’s minds. We tend to see things where a certain kind of mind is seen as defaults but there are big divergents of minds of human individuals and my hope is to go into critical animal studies to see defaults as diversity.
What is the value of being a Wild Hope Fellow? Why should others think about being a fellow?
Being a fellow is an opportunity to become more well-rounded in myself and the other fellows assist me to see outside of myself and to see the bigger picture.
How does what you are studying relate to your sense of purpose or your calling in the world?
My major includes telling stories and communicating these stories to the world to create a more unbiased world and therefore, making the world a better place-creating the world a more diverse place.
The Wild Hope Center strives to promote human and ecological flourishing. What does this mean to you? How do you see yourself contributing to human and ecological flourishing not just for yourself but for others and/or the earth?
I believe that the more educated one is, the more one is aware of the world and its natural gifts. Education goes hand-in-hand with caring for the world in a better way. As we discover the world in new ways, it is to teach our children and work in our community.
What is the value of being a Wild Hope Fellow? Why should others think about being a fellow?
The value of being a Wild Hope Fellow not only broadens one’s sense of purpose, but also encourages others to be eager about learning such a sense of purpose. Others should consider being a fellow because the fellowship asks many difficult questions and forces oneself to look inwards in multiple aspects-that being passion, career and vocation. It makes you ask yourself if what you are doing is what you really want to do, and if it is not, then what is? Overall, cultural differences can offer new perspectives, and as someone who comes from a cultural background, I wanted to offer my perspectives to the Wild Hope community.
How does what you are studying relate to your sense of purpose or your calling in the world?
What I am studying is heavily within the roots of himself and his family. Deciding to do Social Work came from the passion of wanting to make families and people’s lives better because I have seen the way that societies and justices have affected my family and other families as well. Aspects/experiences have altered the world for a person. My decision to continue down this path is a reflection of life experiences and the yearning to better people’s life experiences.
The Wild Hope Center strives to promote human and ecological flourishing. What does this mean to you? How do you see yourself contributing to human and ecological flourishing not just for yourself but for others and/or the earth?
It means to strive for personal growth and empowerment. One is growing here to better the world, therefore it is important to take action and to further these actions. With my career in Social Work, I want to also go into the political aspect because not many social workers are involved with the government, so going down this path would promote this change. I do not want to restrict any aspects of anything for the betterment of the community environment.
What is the value of being a Wild Hope Fellow? Why should others think about being a fellow?
Thinking about vocation is something that I feel like I need to do more often, so setting aside a time to think about that is something I want and this place feels like it will assist me in doing that. One should consider being a fellow because you can make a lot of connections with fellow lutes and help them think about their own vocation and what that means to them.
How does what you are studying relate to your sense of purpose or your calling in the world?
I know that I want to help marginalized groups. My major allows me to learn and understand the complexities of identity and how that can impact how one interacts with the world.
The Wild Hope Center strives to promote human and ecological flourishing. What does this mean to you? How do you see yourself contributing to human and ecological flourishing not just for yourself but for others and/or the earth?
To me, such promotion for flourishing helps people better themselves as well as the people and the environment around them. I am a very big people-person, so if I pick up on someone struggling, I will help them and help them flourish. I love to nurture plants and am also interested in conservation efforts but I am working towards and hoping to be more involved with that.
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