Archives: Alumni Success Stories

Trinity alumna Andrea (Douglas) Mercier ‘06 has written a children’s book in honor of her son, Gabriel, who has severe autism. The author’s hope for Oliver’s Extraordinary Friend is that the book will “bring awareness, educate children through the power of story, and offer families an opportunity for discussions about autism.”

While at Trinity, Andrea met her husband, Michael Mercier ‘05, who has been a great support to Andrea through the entire process of writing Oliver’s Extraordinary Friend. Michael majored in Theology and Andrea majored in Ministry Leadership. After graduating from Trinity, Andrea received a full-tuition scholarship at Northern Seminary as a Kern Scholar, and they both earned a Masters of Divinity from Northern Seminary. Michael later went on to earn a second Masters in Life Coaching and Mentoring from Trinity College of the Bible and Theological Seminary. Currently, Michael serves as a U.S. Army Reserve Chaplain and as a Qualified Behavioral Health Professional for Carle Health, and Andrea is the Associate of Connections at Chillicothe Christian Church. Their only son, Gabriel, is one of their greatest joys in life.

When remembering her time at Trinity, Andrea looks favorably upon her experience as a Resident Assistant (RA). She appreciated caring for and connecting with the members of her residence hall floor. Andrea also recalls attending diverse churches in Chicago as an impactful experience for her, as someone who grew up in a small town. She states that being a part of that community allowed her to “see the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth.”

Receiving a Christian liberal arts education has influenced Andrea’s life. One of the greatest benefits of attending Trinity for her was “learning from professors who loved Jesus and helped their students understand His mission more.” Even by writing a children’s book in honor of her son, Andrea carries on what she has learned at the College. She is making a difference, not only in her current role at the Chillicothe Christian Church, but also as a forthcoming children’s book author.

The Mercier couple’s love for Christ was nurtured in them throughout their journeys at Trinity, and now they are sharing that love with the world. Andrea hopes that by writing and publishing Oliver’s Extraordinary Friend she can “help neurotypical kids feel more comfortable around kids who are on the autism spectrum.” Inclusivity and an appreciation of diversity go a long way in promoting a safe and loving “Kingdom of God on Earth.” Spreading awareness is key to breaking down barriers, and Andrea is doing just that through her children’s book in honor of the Mercier couple’s beloved son, Gabriel.

To get your copy of Oliver’s Extraordinary Friend, please visit the story linked here.

To learn more about this story, please visit the Facebook page linked here.

At Trinity, classes are taught from a Christian perspective, providing students with the tools they need for lifelong learning, community-focused decision-making, and a strong sense of calling and vocation. For Leah Sweetman ’21 and Vinnie Adams ’10, refining those tools led to careers in Nicaragua – a clear example of following God’s call in their lives.

Growing up in the Midwest, Sweetman knew from a young age she wanted to live in a different country. “I looked for a college that let me grow in my independence but was still close enough to home where I could visit frequently,” Sweetman said. “I was really impressed by Trinity’s academic programs and valued that I could continue my athletic career on the softball team.”

Working toward a degree in cross-cultural ministry, Sweetman leaned on her advisor, Dr. Benjamin Ribbens, to achieve her goals of studying in Ecuador during her time at Trinity and still graduating in just 3.5 years.

Shortly after graduation, Sweetman began a one-year internship with Resonate Global Mission, serving with local ministries in Nicaragua. “As my internship ended,” Sweetman said, “I was unsure what my next steps would be. I had a job offer in the U.S. working in the field that I had spent my life working toward. However, I felt called to stay in Nicaragua. God miraculously opened the door to teaching. It became evident to me that although I felt underprepared and a bit overwhelmed, it fit exactly what I needed for my personal, professional, and spiritual growth.”

Sweetman began teaching English and social studies to 7th- and 8th-grade students at Nicaragua Christian Academy (NCA). “Although I didn’t graduate with a degree in education, NCA took a chance on me and valued the skills I gained at Trinity.”

Today, Sweetman holds the role of Intercultural Facilitator at the Nehemiah Center in Nicaragua, connecting programs in Nicaragua to their North American support network through fundraising, hosting international teams, navigating cultural conversations, and witnessing a transformation in the lives of new Christians. She’s still involved in NCA coaching and substitute teaching.

“I am so thankful for the opportunities I have had, and the way God is using organizations like NCA and the Nehemiah Center to transform lives in Nicaragua – as well as pouring into their employees like me.”

Adams’ relationship with NCA formed when he was a junior in high school, spending a semester studying at the school. “After the semester, I felt convinced that I wanted to go into education, specifically special education, Adams said. “My cousin is a former student at Elim Christian School, and Elim was the type of place that kept coming to mind when I imagined my working future. Knowing that Trinity had a strong relationship with Elim, I wound up at Trinity in the SPED program.”

During his time at Trinity, Adams traveled back to Nicaragua and was a student teacher at NCA. “This marked my second time living in Nicaragua and was a big part of forming my love for the country. There were relationships I formed during this time that I was able to circle back to when I was in the discernment process of moving here. Pete Post, Don Woo, Rhonda Mattson, and Joy Meyer were some of the professors at Trinity who influenced me the most.”

Adams currently spends part of his time working with the church outreach ministry at Tesoros de Dios, traveling to local churches to give theological and practical presentations about disability ministry, as well as visiting with and praying for families in their homes. He also fulfills pastoral duties at an international church in Managua by preaching sermons, planning worship, leading meetings, creating communications, and spending time in prayer with community members.

Both Sweetman and Adams have responded to God’s call to serve overseas, and both credit Trinity for providing the tools they need to shine His light in Central America.

“Trinity prepared me for life after graduation by helping me articulate what I believe and how to practically live that out,” Sweetman said. “For me, life abroad has given me a great appreciation for the world that God created, as well as reassurance in the way He is the same across languages, borders, and cultures.”

Adams shared, “God continues to direct and work, and it’s been a fun journey to be on.”

If you’re interested in exploring job opportunities at Nicaragua Christian Academy, visit this link to see current openings.

Story summary: Business fellows mentoring with alumni provided customized and relational time with the student that helped grow the students network and ultimately was a catalyst for him landing a job in California soon after graduating in December.

Many folks have heard the phrase “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” But in many ways, it’s more about who you know that cares enough to help you succeed. And for Trinity students, their interactions with alumni regularly result in discovering just how much they care about their success.

In 2021 Trinity’s business department launched their new Business Fellows program for some of the top students in the program to experience an enhance level of career support and advice by paring them with an alumni mentor. This past fall, Noah Pavlovics ‘22 learned first-hand just how valuable Trinity’s alumni network can be.

During the summer of 2022, Noah received an invitation to join the Fellows program from department chair, Sundeep Vira. After applying and being accepted to the program, professor Vira partnered with the Alumni office to find a good pairing and connected him to Jeff Wiedenaar ‘96. As a graduate of the business program himself, Jeff was excited to a very relational way that he could give back to his alma mater.

“I had let Trinity know about a year ago that I’d love to come alongside students and help give back in this way,” Weidenaar said. “Trinity was there for me when I was a student, and it was a way I wanted to give back and express my gratitude.”

Shortly after being paired up, Noah and Jeff met up at Trinity’s Bootsma Bookstore/Cafe to meet face to face and discuss some goals for their time together. Learning that Noah planned to graduate in December, they set out an accelerated timeline to help Noah to think about his next steps and ultimately find a place to work after graduation.

“Jeff was awesome,” Noah said. “He not only helped me re-write my resume and update my LinkedIn profile, but also challenged me to think about my goals for after graduation and inspired me to achieve them.”

One thing that became clear after their first meeting was that Noah desired to find a job back near his hometown in Southern California. Realizing that his personal network was limited in that area, Jeff turned to Trinity’s alumni office for names of other alumni living in that area and worked with Noah to help him craft an email to reach out and ask if they might be willing to help.

And in true Trinity fashion, they did. Noah’s introductory emails lead to other introductions including board members and staff with networks in that area. They in turn connected him to people they knew and trusted who had more direct work experience in business development, and specifically in the construction field. Noah began applying for jobs and eventually received a multiple offers from employers.

“Not every job Noah applied to was something he was seeking, but I still encouraged him to apply because you’ll never know you don’t like something until you explore it,” Weidenaar said. “I encouraged him to keep his options open and have a backup plan, even if it wasn’t his first choice.”

Once the job offers came in, Noah had even more advice he was able to glean from Jeff. “Jeff took the time to help me navigate some offers that I had gotten, and was sounding board to help me process the options that would be best. He was incredibly reassuring, encouraged me not to rush a decision, helped me think about how to negotiate a salary if it wasn’t what I looking for.”

“I encouraged him to take some time over Christmas break to really pray about the decision,” Jeff said. “Not only that, but he needed to remember that there can be more to a job offer than just a salary. Other benefits can factor in to the overall package so he needed to weigh the pros and cons to come to a conclusion.”

In January, Noah started his new job at Arena Staffing in Temecula, CA. What originally started as a conversation around coffee lead to connections with Trinity alumni and staff who put him in touch with the company.

“I was blown away by how understanding everyone was, and how they rallied around me to help me succeed,” said Noah.

As Jeff reflected on the he realized Noah wasn’t the only one who was blessed by the process. “I realized having worked in the business world now for 25 years all I didn’t know when I was seeking that first job. It was so encouraging to be able to give back and even more rewarding because Trinity facilitated it which was great. It’s a tangible way to show Christ’s love back to students.”

Now that both of them have joined the ranks as Trinity alumni, they plan to keep in touch. And you can be sure that Noah will be one of the first in line to raise his hand and be a Business Fellow mentor in the near future.

If you would like to get more involved in opportunities like the Business Fellows program, be sure to sign up as a member of the TrollNation Network. You can also join the Trinity Alumni Group on LinkedIn to be made aware of future volunteer opportunities.

Trinity has always placed a significant emphasis on gaining professional work experience as a student. As a result, every graduate receives hands-on practice through an internship. Luke Snodgrass ’24 and Carter Sheehan ’23 not only gained valuable experience through a marketing internship this past summer, but they also had the unique opportunity of being mentored and managed by Trinity alum Nick Bermudez ’06.

Bermudez is the CEO of M2E Chicago, LLC, a company that helps businesses make marketing easy. “I help small businesses explore a variety of options to strengthen their different marketing channels,” Bermudez described. He started the company in 2010 and has experienced tremendous growth. From building compelling websites to working with print marketing to providing automation software, M2E covers it all.

AllCity Adjusting (a public adjusting firm) is one of M2E’s national brand-building clients and sought out Bermudez’s expertise on a large project – where Snodgrass and Sheehan stepped in. Through their internship, they performed in-depth research to help create an educational portal for training future adjusters. Bermudez described it this way, “Every state has different guidelines, so they compiled a 50-state spreadsheet that compared study guides against state guidelines to create a standard study guide for future adjusters. As a result, agents will be able to generate a study guide for their state almost instantaneously. It will be entirely automated.”

This undertaking wouldn’t have been possible without Snodgrass and Sheehan. AllCity’s team faced the challenge of not having the time to perform the research themselves, so they requested help from M2E and, in turn, interns from Trinity. Owner Andy Gurczak shared, “[Snodgrass and Sheehan] were amazing, hardworking, and ethically well-mannered. They understood the vision and committed to it.”

Gurczak and Bermudez oversaw the project and were impressed with what these interns brought to the table. “Carter and Luke showed me that Trinity is still attracting the highest-quality students,” Bermudez shared. “They are both men of integrity; they have already achieved a level of humility, composure, focus, and respect that many people in their thirties, forties, or even fifties haven’t achieved.”

Many of those skills have taken shape during their time at Trinity. When asked how his coursework prepared him to be an effective intern, Snodgrass shared, “Professors who took the time to invest in students’ overall skills played a big factor. In addition, my classmates, and their perspectives also better prepared me for this role. Because of their skills and interests during group work, I was more prepared to contribute in a meaningful manner professionally.”

Sheehan reflected, “It was great to work with people that genuinely care about my growth as a professional and a human. I was super grateful to be able to help this company with their noble cause, but I was also happy to gain a couple of mentors in the process.”

The growth that takes place during an internship is what makes the hands-on experience so valuable. Bermudez invested in these students and challenged them to build upon what they’d already learned in the classroom.

Jeremy Klyn ’02, Director of Alumni and Family Engagement at Trinity, shared, “This connection has been an incredible reminder to me of just how amazing our students are. I think our alumni office and those familiar with this place can become so used to the high level of quality and excellence we see every day that we can take it for granted. This experience is yet another reminder of just how much our students (and alumni) shine in the work they do every day, largely because it is an extension of their faith and calling in this world.”