Dear Editor,

While I’m glad the Mars’ Hill has the scope to run articles on this issue, the severe tone of John Hennenfent’s letter does not balance out other articles you may have published. Yes, the student newspaper should create a point of dialogue concerning such issues. However, the tone of your article was in no way invitational for discussion or debate. Indeed, Mars’ Hill is not a Vancouver newspaper; it is a university paper whose student population is 32 per cent international.

I just want to take a moment to let you know about a very special woman working at TWU who deserves recognition: Millie Notte. Millie works in the cafeteria and has recently been working at the Cog in Northwest. Wherever she is, Millie exudes a personality that goes above and beyond the call of duty. She chooses to connect with the student body on a deeper level and always offers a smile and a hearty laugh. Recently, Millie threw a tea party in Northwest where she shared a little bit about her life. According to her, TWU students are the best! Millie exemplifies the kind of love for Christ that TWU academics teach us about. I believe that Millie deserves special recognition for her outstanding love. My hope is that TWU students will reflect the same kind of love for Millie as she shows to us. To God be the Glory.

Oh, the classic battle of the intellect at Trinity Western University when it comes to the discussion of whether to be thankful or disgusted by Sodexo. I’ve been there, believe me, after eating at Sodexo for three years I do not think that anyone wrote more comment cards than me (perhaps revealing which side of the debate I was on more often than not). Do we need to approach the dining services team with joy and thankfulness? Of course – especially to those who go out of their way to make our day just a little bit sweeter (har-har). But simply telling people to suck it up, be thankful you’re eating, and oh by the way, that’ll be $1400 a semester to live off of, is having your head in the clouds. As any growing young man can attest, the budget you are allotted, matched with the prices of selection and with the fact that we’re not five years old, forces you to spend outside of this allotted food budget. For myself, the outlet was purchasing milk and cereal to alleviate the hunger pains, in an effort to make sure I was on budget by the end of the semester. Now, living in on-campus apartments, it’s nice to know that the money I’m paying for food will be a good product (well most of the time), within a much more reasonable budget (between $225 and $250 a month).  Do not ever stop complainers from complaining; the school cafeteria is still in great need for a better, more economically sustainable approach. It still is bewildering to me, and it should be to all students, why it is mandatory for a student to come to Trinity and live on campus for the first two years and then have to eat at the cafeteria. There is perhaps no more expensive avenue for students going to school at Trinity then having to live in dorms and pay for a meal plan at Sodexo. Maybe it’s just an easy way to get as much money as possible from the students until they wise up after a few years by either leaving, or staying in more economic means. But, as mentioned, we should never be ungrateful for the privilege we have to levy our $1400 per semester on a system that doesn’t make sense, as the fact we have the money to spend in the first place is a miracle in itself. The joy we must find in the cafeteria is the joy to break bread and be merry with our brothers and sisters in Christ, for it is there where the bonds of food last forever.

I cried in the line up for a theatre production. I was alone in a sea of people – strangers bumping, jostling so close at times I could smell their breath and yet I was alone. I stood with emotions welling up, trying to force them down. I became acutely aware of how exposed, vulnerable and utterly futile my efforts were to hide my internal workings.

I found the editorial article regarding the leader of the opposition seeking a new home (“Ignatieff seeks a new home” Sept. 23, 2009) as off-base and a misunderstanding of the basic premises of democracy.

We have become a complacent society, one that is becoming increasingly ignorant of essential matters – matters that include life and death situations.

Dear Pessimistic Sophomores,