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Students in field

Alums come back to help at Servant Leadership House

September 23, 2016

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It was a beautiful summer day in August when Gary and Jean Terrio made it back to Finlandia’s campus. The five-hour drive from northern Minnesota took its wear, but the end product was well worth all of the pre-trip work and the installation that was about to happen for these proud alumni of the university that went by Suomi College when they were students.

terrios-at-finlandia“I have a passion for woodworking, and a passion for Finlandia University, an ELCA school of higher learning,” Gary said.

That passion for woodworking will be making a difference for Finlandia students for years to come as his handcrafted shelfing unit is now a main fixture in the kitchen of the Servant Leadership House at Finlandia University. The unit is four feet by seven feet, and took Gary about six weeks to make in his Cloquet, Minnesota home.

“My wife and I did most of the work, with our daughter, her husband and two children pitching in when possible, and giving moral and verbal support,” he said.

The unit was then packed up and brought to the Keweenaw. Once on campus, the Terrio’s were joined by students and staff to install it and work on a couple other projects.

“It was a pleasure to interact with the young people, to see their enthusiasm for school and life, and to work alongside them,” Jean said.

The unit was financed by Thrivent Financial and its Action Team Funds program. Servant Leadership House Director René Johnson helped connect the dots and complete the installation.

“The Terrios are amazing people,” she said. “Having them on campus working with our students was truly a blessing for everyone involved. I cannot thank them enough.”

Additional photos from the day of work can be seen below.

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