Alumni Profiles
- A battle of perception
- Couple giving kids hope
- Cumberbatch releases solo CD
- Publisher reprints David Liverett book
A battle of perception
By Cara Miller
Since the war in Iraq began, Lieutenant Colonel David Farlow BA ’84 has had a significant role in fighting terrorism. But the battleground is a little different for Farlow, whose main objective has less to do with capturing insurgents and more to do with promoting public awareness and dispersing accurate information of the war effort. His biggest allies are reporters and media outlets, and he measures his success by the size of his audience.
As deputy director of public affairs for United States Central Command, Farlow is fighting terrorism from a public relations standpoint, battling sensationalism and inflammatory reporting.
“We are fighting a perception battle,” Farlow says. “There are guys running around with rifles, shooting each other on both sides, and then there are guys like me on both sides, who are trying to garner the headlines. More than anything Al-Qaeda wants the American public to say ‘Let’s forget this nonsense, let’s get out of there.’ If that happens, they’ve won.”
From the Central Command base in Tampa, Fla., Farlow manages a staff of 50 communication professionals who interact and share information with U.S. and international media organizations. His area of responsibility spans a 27-country region throughout Central Asia, the Middle East, and the Horn of Africa.
“We provide the facts on what has happened — the good, the bad, and the ugly,” he explains. “We want to tell the total story, not just the explosion in Baghdad, or the explosion of a helicopter.”
To that end, Farlow helped create the Media Engagement Team, distributing interviews with overseas civilians, U.S. troops, and commanders to media outlets in the United States and around the world. Similarly, the embedding program, in which reporters shadow high-ranking officials during military operations and classified briefings, has helped shed new light on U.S. military operations.
Through various media outlets, Central Command reaches between 60-80 million people each week, hoping to depict the big picture in the Middle East and elicit support for the war on terrorism.
Amidst his high-profile, often hectic career, Farlow credits Anderson University for providing him with a strong liberal arts background. “It taught me how to problem solve and look at issues from a variety of angles — useful skills for a career as a military officer,” he says.
As an undergraduate, Farlow didn’t picture himself as a military officer. In fact, his plan was to become a lawyer once he saved enough money for law school. When he found out the Army would help him pay for graduate school, he enlisted, becoming a military policeman and serving his first assignment in Germany.
“I looked into law programs,” he explains. “I talked to JAG [the millitary’s legal corps] officers about what they do, but the more I talked with them, the less appealing it sounded. I was having so much fun as a platoon leader, I decided to continue as a military officer.”
The Army later gave Farlow a secondary specialty in public affairs. He worked for two three-star generals, went to Ball State to get his master’s degree in public relations, and worked for a prestigious PR firm before returning to the Army.
Farlow has been a military media adviser for 18 years now. He and his wife, Kimberly (Grubbs) BA ’85, live just outside of Tampa with their three sons, and they work together in balancing his military career with family responsibilities. “My wife is supportive and proud of my service,” he explains. “But I think she’s also looking forward to the day when I become a civilian again.”
Couple giving kids hope
By Deborah Lilly
J R McGee BA ’92 always wanted to be involved in mission work. Even while at AU studying computer science, business, and education, mission work was in the back of his mind. And when he went to Washington state and started a successful real estate business, he was still thinking about missions. Then he was invited to lead a bicycle tour around China.
“I loved the Chinese people. Their determination, hard work, and openness impressed me,” JR says. “I came home and my real estate business continued to do well, but my heart wasn’t in it.” So he decided to go back to China for at least a year. He enrolled in a Chinese university for four months to learn the language, then he traveled the country learning how to interact with the people.
A friend who knew McGee’s desire to work with children suggested he help with a project called Gift of Joy. A Hong Kong woman, Anita, started the organization to help children who were orphaned or lived in poverty in China and were being denied access to education because they couldn’t pay their school fees.
Anita began her work in 1998 when serious flooding destroyed the homes and fields of Chinese families in Central China. Because of the devastation, several children did not have the funds to return to school. Anita raised $1,000, enough money to send 70 children to school, and Gift of Joy was born. Since then, all 70 children have graduated from college, and 65 are in the final year of their graduate work.
JR joined Anita and fell in love with her work. He fell in love with her, too, and they were married in November 2000.
Since 1998, the McGees have helped more than 1,000 children with the mission of developing their God-given dreams. Gift of Joy enables determined orphans and poor children in the third world by providing parental love, international-level schooling, and biblical leadership principles to live by.
Although their efforts in China have often been misunderstood by the Chinese government, the misunderstandings have led to an expansion JR and Anita could not have dreamed up. Their work in China has also caught the attention of mission organizations around the world. Through these connections they have expanded to South Africa. This time they are enjoying the luxury of full support by the government, South African led partnerships, and the freedom to publicly share their faith.
The McGees and their two small children, Amanda and Josiah, are beginning their work in South Africa in the northern part of the country near the Zimbabwe border. According to the McGees, South Africa suffers from a 48 percent unemployment rate. There are nearly 600,000 orphans in South Africa, due in part to AIDS. Within two years, that number is expected to grow to 1.6 million orphans.
The McGees work with children as young as 4, helping them to get an education in order to pursue their God-given dreams. But with the project in South Africa being so new, JR and Anita are taking the first three months to assess what the needs of the children are.
For more information about Gift of Joy and to follow their work in South Africa, visit their Web site at www.giftofjoy.org.
Cumberbatch releases solo CD
By Cara Miller
Perhaps his singing career has taken him far above his greatest dreams — winning prestigious music competitions, performing for national leaders like Prince Charles, and releasing his recent CD, The Lord is My Light.
However, Eddie Cumberbatch BA ’84 admits that his start in the industry was modest, originating in his hometown village of La Pastora, Santa Cruz, Trinidad and Tobago, where his parents taught and pastored at the West Indies Theological College (WITC).
“My mother taught music theory and the piano,” he says. “At church, my parents made sure there was always a music program, and we were always involved. My first singing solo was right there in church.”
Cumberbatch’s first experience at Anderson University came when his parents decided to enroll. Working with several Church of God missionaries through the WITC, the Rev. Carlton Cumberbatch BA ’67, MDiv ’76 and the Rev. Theodosia Cumberbatch BA ’76, MDiv ’77 became interested in AU and its School of Theology, and they moved the family to Anderson while they pursued degrees.
Two years later, Cumberbatch’s sisters enrolled in AU, and a few years after that, it was Eddie’s turn. Although pursuing a physics major, he remained active in music, joining the Male Chorus, the Anderson College Choir, Community Band, and the Park Place choir. He even took private voice classes with then-music professor Barbara Douglas.
Cumberbatch has since returned to Trinidad where he has been a high school physics and math teacher for the last 13 years. He has continued his passion for music, joining the Lydian Singers in Trinidad and performing several recitals.
“I had a lot of success at the local music festival one year and won many of the trophies and awards,” he says. “I was encouraged to audition for an international competition in South Africa.”
Months of preparation paid off for Cumberbatch as he won in the senior vocal class of the 1997 international competition — a feat that launched his career to a whole new level. “I have since been asked to perform in other parts of the Caribbean, the U.S., Canada, Germany, and the memorable Hong Kong,” he says.
The production of The Lord is My Light, Cumberbatch’s first solo CD, came out of a partnership between Cumberbatch and Rev. Paul Yerden BS ’59, a highly accomplished piano accompanist. Yerden and Cumberbatch have performed several concerts together, including a performance in Anderson, Ind., in August 2005. Yerden and his wife, Rita Jo (Hankins) Yerden BS ’59, an organist, teamed up to provide accompaniment for three of the CD’s tracks.
“The support for the CD has been overwhelming,” Cumberbatch says, mentioning that all proceeds from the CD will benefit the WITC. From here, Cumberbatch intends to continue his teaching and singing careers, although he admits the chalk dust isn’t ideal for his singing voice. He also looks forward to a mini-tour throughout the Midwest, United States, with the Yerdens and his wife, Rhonda, in late July and early August, ending with an evening concert at Park Place Church of God in Anderson, Ind., on Aug. 6 at 6 p.m.
Complete Schedule:
Eddie Cumberbatch Tour -- July 23-August 6, 2006, accompanied by Paul and Rita Jo Yerden
SUNDAY, JULY 23 -- Alma, Michigan -- 9:00 a.m. First Church of God, 200 West Superior Street, (989) 463-3730, Reverend Steven Wimmer, Senior Pastor
SUNDAY, JULY 23 -- Flint, Michigan -- 6:00 p.m. West Court Street Church of God, 2920 West Court Street, (810) 238-2631, Reverend Tom Settlemyre, Senior Pastor
TUESDAY, JULY 25 -- Grand Junction, Michigan -- 7:00 p.m. Warner Memorial Camp Meeting, 1 mile north of Grand Junction, on Lester Lake, (269) 434-6844, Doc Stevens, Program Director
WEDNESDAY, JULY 26 -- Chicago, Illinois -- 7:00 p.m. Langley Avenue Church of God, 6157-59 South Langley Avenue, (773) 643-9688, Reverend Noah Reid, Senior Pastor
THURSDAY, JULY 27 -- St. Louis, Missouri -- 7:00 p.m. First Church of God, 11532 Larimore Road, (314) 868-3450, Reverend John Klotz, Senior Pastor
FRIDAY, JULY 28 -- Kansas City, Missouri -- 7:00 p.m. Pittman Road Church of God, 4700 Pittman Road, (816) 737-1313, Reverend Larry Logue, Senior Pastor
SUNDAY, JULY 30 -- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma -- 10:15 a.m. Shartel Church of God, 11600 South Western Avenue, (405) 691-1216, Reverend Bradley Kendall, Senior Pastor
SUNDAY, JULY 30 -- Tulsa, Oklahoma -- 6:00 p.m. Red Fork Church of God, 3319 West 41st Street, (918)446-4479, Reverend Brent Hinkle, Senior Pastor
TUESDAY, AUGUST 1 -- Ashland, Kentucky -- 7:00 p.m. Meade Station Church of God, 1315 Marsh Hill Drive, (606) 928-5263, Reverend Robert Jordan, Senior Pastor
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 2 -- Akron, Ohio -- 7:00 p.m. Arlington Church of God, 539 South Arlington Street, (330) 773-3321, Reverend Ronald Fowler, Senior Pastor
THURSDAY, AUGUST 3 -- Middletown, Ohio -- 7:00 p.m. Breiel Boulevard First Church of God, 2000 North Breiel Blvd, (513) 424-1887, Reverend David Colp, Senior Pastor
FRIDAY, AUGUST 4 -- Elkhart, Indiana -- 7:00 p.m. Adamsville Road Church of God, 51287 County Road 7, (574) 264-7255, Reverend Robert Meckley, Senior Pastor
SUNDAY, AUGUST 6 -- Noblesville, Indiana -- 10:30 a.m. New Life Community Church of God, 17777 Little Chicago Road, (317) 867-4717, Reverend Fred Harting, Associate Pastor
SUNDAY, AUGUST 6 -- Anderson, Indiana -- 6:00 p.m. Park Place Church of God, 501 College Avenue, (765) 642-0216, Reverend David Markle, Senior Pastor
Publisher reprints David Liverett book
By Deborah Lilly
David Liverett’s book It All Started with a Song has been picked up and reprinted by Thomas Nelson publishers. The book has been renamed This Is My Story and features 146 of the world’s greatest gospel singers. For each artist, there is a pen and ink portrait by Liverett BA ’68 and a brief biography.
“I’ve always loved to draw people,” says Liverett. As a child, he would draw in church, and during the week, his pencil would be stuck underneath his pew by a piece of gum. As a teenager, he would draw pictures of people at parties.
Liverett isn’t new to the gospel arena either. During the 1970s and 1980s, he worked for the Gaithers and then Pinebrook studios designing album jackets. He has also done work for the Bill Gaither Trio, Praise Gathering, and Springhouse.
The reprint includes six additional gospel artists — Elvis Presley, Tim Riley, Andraé Crouch, Gene McDonald, Don Reid, and Harold Reid — and a full-color section of photographs. The book is available at www.thomasnelson.com.
Liverett is currently working on a similar book featuring country musicians who have a Christian connection.
