Waynesburg University honored its baccalaureate and commencement speakers during its 166th Commencement Exercises Sunday, May 6.
David Barensfeld, president and CEO of Ellwood Group Inc., was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree, and the Rev. Dr. Stuart Broberg, senior pastor of The Church of the Covenant in Washington, Pennsylvania, was presented the Timothy & Carolyn Thyreen Service Leadership Award for his church’s exemplary and transformational servant leadership.
The following citations were read:
David Barensfeld
David Barensfeld, for your hardworking and entrepreneurial spirit, as evidenced by a successful career as the leader of Ellwood Group Incorporated, Waynesburg University honors you.
For nearly four decades, you have led Ellwood Group Incorporated to new and continued growth. Overcoming obstacles with vision, commitment and strategic risk, you have risen to the challenges of a changing world market.
Your efforts in supporting a robust American manufacturing sector and your vision for the sustainability of tomorrow have set you apart, reflecting your passion for your work and the future of our country.
As you strive to influence positive change in today’s society through civic engagement, you are an inspiration to the next generation of entrepreneurs. Similarly, your attention to the stewardship of God’s creation is exemplary.
Your ambition, influential career, and moral and business philosophies serve as examples to Waynesburg University students as they prepare to become the leaders of tomorrow. For that, we are pleased to recognize you.
In gratitude and respect for your achievements and for the ways in which you parallel Waynesburg University’s mission of faith, learning and serving, it is with great honor that we confer upon you our degree of Doctor of Humane Letters.
The Church of the Covenant
This Award celebrates Timothy and Carolyn Thyreen’s legacy of serving others and is presented to those who exemplify servant leadership in their daily lives, resulting in a transformational effect on their area of focus. For decades, the Church of the Covenant has actively and enthusiastically participated in Christ’s ministry, with an impact reaching both nearby neighbors and communities in the far reaches of the world.
The Church of the Covenant has foreseen the challenges and opportunities of transformational service, and its parishioners have seized the opportunity to help others through active, hands-on service locally and in Haiti, New Mexico and West Virginia.
As the congregation unites to provide volunteers and financial support with the goal of meeting the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of others, their thoughtful and strategic service has tangible results that make a difference in the lives of many.
Beyond those tangible results are those which are immeasurable; as the church’s mission teams and volunteers meet despair with hope and suffering with strength, they bring light and love into the hearts of those they serve.
In honor of the servant leadership exemplified by former Waynesburg University President Timothy Thyreen and former First Lady Carolyn Thyreen, and in recognition of its embodiment of the highest principles of this institution, Waynesburg University honors the Church of the Covenant.
