by Rebecka Weinsteiger

At the age of 20, I left Pennsylvania to live in Nevada for year of national service in the AmeriCorps.  I fell in love with the West and upon my program completion; I searched for school in the Northwest to continue my college education.  It wasn’t long before I found Oregon State University and the Corvallis community.  In 2002, I was accepted into OSU.  While pursuing a degree, I quickly discovered the Memorial Union Craft Center and I enrolled in a beginning pottery class.  During the spring term of 2003, I experienced some unfortunate personal and family troubles.  The out-of-state tuition costs and some dramatic events, such as my grandmother’s death and a family separation, left me feeling a little lost, as a new student in a new community.  I withdrew from the university to take care of myself and my family issues, but found solace in remaining at the Craft Center.  New to the community, I made my first connections with students, faculty, and community members at the Craft Center.  Passionate instructors helped me rediscover my high school enthusiasm for the crafts.  I spend a year volunteering for the Craft Center.  I assisted staff members with projects, helped set up for events and dedicated free time to recycling clay.  In the summer I was hired as an instructor for their Kid’s Spirit potter class.  I spend many mornings inspiring children with my passion for clay, and in return I was rightfully inspired by their limitless energy and creativity.

This fall, I returned to school to finish my Anthropology degree.  I still instruct pottery classes geared to children and I work regular hours as a clay technician recycling clay, as well as other maintenance duties.  I was so fortunate to have found the Craft Center at such a troubling time in my life an dit continues to provide me with gratifying experiences everyday, whether I am teaching, working, or absorbing the imaginative environment.  The Memorial Union is a host to these pockets of life bridging the active campus and community members to a fulfilling involvement within the university, beyond the books and beyond the classes. Through hosting guest speakers, offering concerts, celebrating parents on campus, the Memorial Union remains a gateway for students, faculty, and community members to come together and truly embrace the spirit of OSU.