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The prison, surrounded by razor coil and a chain-link fence, was old, dark and dingy, with sticky floors like old movie theaters. Jerry swallowed hard and took a deep breath. A guard behind bulletproof glass opened a steel door. Another guard led him down a dim hallway to a door with a 4-inch opening and said, “When you’re ready to come out, just yell.” The door clanged shut. Turning around, he saw 50 pairs of eyes staring back. 
That heart-in-your-throat experience was the first time Jerry Nelsen stepped foot in a prison. But it wasn’t the last. “I felt I was walking into something with no power to get out on my own … I knew I had a message to deliver, no matter what,” said Nelsen, who began a prison ministry about 10 years ago. “I got the opportunity to go to the prison and felt bound to go, even though they may ridicule me for invading their closed society.” Instead, a few of the inmates gathered around as Nelsen prayed and read from the Bible. “I wanted them to understand I was no better than they, but we all need the Lord in our lives. I’m still amazed that the men respect me and stand up for me when critics interrupt.” Man of ScienceOriginally from Dows, Iowa, Nelsen came to UNI in 1957 and graduated in 1961 with a B.S. in science education. If it weren’t for his freshman biology class lab partner, his career path may have been very different. “The biology labs used formaldehyde to preserve specimens for dissection, but I quickly discovered I was allergic to it. I couldn’t even see the specimen, so my partner named the structures while I looked on from a safe distance,” he said. “For every lab session that semester, he stayed to review and demonstrate the names and techniques…I may have failed if it had not been for him.” Nelsen was able to continue with his science classes. After graduating he taught in the Cedar Rapids Schools and at Coe College, earned a master’s degree in plant physiology, a doctorate in civil engineering/health physics and became a certified industrial hygienist and radio-ecologist. In 1974, he went to work for the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (now Department of Energy). “I worked first with university research contracts for the DOE out of the Argonne National Laboratory in Chicago and later on a large military industrial complex at the Savanna River Site, near Augusta (Georgia),” Nelsen said. In 1990, while living in Plainfield, Illinois, a “monster tornado” hit the Plainfield-Joliet area. His wife, Kathryn Claussen Nelsen (‘62), died two weeks later from internal injuries. He has been married to Dyanna Marshall Nelsen for “13 of the most wonderful years. I have been inordinately blessed by the Lord with two wonderful companions.” He and Dyanna live in Aiken, South Carolina. 
MinistryAfter retiring from the DOE in 2002, Nelsen began his full-time ministry. He serves two prisons in Georgia and one in South Carolina. He has worked with felons convicted of robbery, rape and murder, and although he does not judge them, he never lets down his guard. “I shake hands with the inmates and sometimes embrace. I close my eyes when I pray,” he said. “But I’m always cautious and position myself so that I’m visible to the guards. Most of these men are con artists to some degree, but I trust the Lord for protection.” Nelsen and his wife also minister to a special-needs Sunday school class and he preaches at a homeless mission and writes a monthly column for his church’s newsletter. UNI DaysWhile Nelsen earned his graduate degrees at other universities, he said UNI provided the framework for his career. “UNI did a lot for me. It gave me a career path and brought new awareness to my life. It was the foundation upholding my life values and I have wonderful memories.” He recalled a professor who spent the first day of class taking names and photographing the students. “I thought it was a waste of time—I was eager for knowledge. The next class day I was astonished when the professor knew everyone’s names and hometowns. That class was one of the most memorable and wonderful experiences of learning I’ve had,” he said. “I can’t measure the value of it.” Nelsen was a chemistry lab assistant for professors Kercheval, Wilson and Lyons, and during his senior year he trained a new lab assistant—a “tall, lanky, country boy, bright, quiet and obedient and a good worker. Perhaps a diamond in the rough.” His name was Robert Koob. “I thought he might have been brighter than I was, but I didn’t let him know it,” Nelsen said. “His first job was hard work: clean the stone lab benches and treat them with linseed oil.” President Koob recalls those days. “(Jerry) was my first supervisor as a lab assistant. Like most people I met he was cordial and helpful. I do recall rubbing down the lab benches and having to wear work clothes for the job because the oil was difficult to get out if you were a little sloppy, which I was.” |
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His first day on the job at the Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, D.C., Dan Sterenchuk got on a plane to Israel. 
“The HWW program not only helps diminish psychological trauma but also promotes permanent changes in attitude and behavior, helping to prevent chronic emotional, behavioral and physical problems,” said Sterenchuk (‘02), a Cedar Rapids native. CMBM founder, Dr. James Gordon, leads training with an international faculty of physicians, psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses and social workers. “Our international faculty are carefully selected for this work with traumatized populations. Many of them have lived in conflict and war situations and bring deep personal experiences as well as high levels of skill and knowledge to the training,” Sterenchuk explained. The initial six-day program teaches the science and practice of mind-body medicine, psychological self-care and group support, later followed by four days of advanced training on how to conduct the groups they will eventually lead. Sterenchuk said HWW has had documented success in Bosnia, Kosovo and with New York City firefighters and their families following 9/11. “CMBM believes in creating a sustainable structure adapted to local needs and supported by local people. This ensures it is relevant to the local population’s needs and helps promote interdependence of the local community,” he said. “So after a few years the local population will be empowered to teach others and integrate the structure into their communities.” 
“My UNI courses in humanities and literature prepared me for a lot of experiences. The capacity to understand a situation from different levels and being able to critically analyze it is invaluable,” he said. “A liberal arts education is one of the best ways to become a knowledgeable global citizen.” While his education and experience have provided him with direction, he said his parents have influenced him the most. “My parents provided wonderful role models and have exemplified empathy, compassion, service and respect for others,” he said. “My father was a paramedic and a firefighter and my mother was a nurse. There’s always been that foundation within my family of a dedication to service. My parents continually emphasized the importance of giving back to one’s community and the value of service.” In his first year at UNI, Sterenchuk was a senator for Bartlett Hall in Northern Iowa Student Government. He became NISG president as a junior. He was a Student Alumni Ambassador, and served on the UNI North Central Association Self-Study Steering Committee, Student Activity Fee Committee, Student Computer Advisory Committee and Board of Control for Student Broadcasting. He also studied English literature for one semester at the University of Hull in England and French for one year at the Universite’ Catholique de L’Quest in Angers, France. “I knew my path might be unconventional but I trusted my heart. When I studied in England and France I knew I wanted to work somewhere that I could travel and interact with people from around the world,” he said. “My experience illustrates the reach a UNI education affords its alumni and the importance of such an education in understanding the most devastating conflicts and trauma throughout the world.” When not in the Middle East, Sterenchuk is in D.C., overseeing the Israel/Gaza programs and representing CMBM in legislative affairs and educating Congressional members and staff about its programs. “I love D.C. It actually reminds me of living in France—there’s a nice European flair with gardens and trees all throughout the city. There’s always things to do and there’s great diversity,” he said. “I felt within the first week of being here that I belonged.” |
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