The alumni H-Club at Hope College will present its Hope For Humanity Award to Dr. Vern L. Sterk ‘64 during next week’s HOPEYs ceremony at DeVos Fieldhouse.
A former cross country runner for the Flying Dutchmen, Sterk is a retired Reformed
Church in America missionary who served in Chiapas, Mexico, for 41 years with his
wife Carla (VandeBunte) ‘65. He also worked as a professor at Western Theological
Seminary for 12 years before retirement.
The HOPEYs celebration of Hope College Athletics and senior student-athletes is April
18 at DeVos Fieldhouse. Community members and Hope College fans are invited to attend.
Admission is free. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. The program starts at 7 p.m.
The H-Club selects recipients for this award from nominees who meet the following
criteria:
- Former Hope College student-athlete.
- Demonstrated Christian commitment and servanthood in his or her career.
- Eligible to be nominated for other awards.
- Not members of the Hope College Alumni Board or Hope College Board of Trustees.
Past Hope for Humanity Recipients
Sterk captained the Flying Dutchmen cross country teams his senior and juniors seasons.
He graduated from Hope College in 1964 with a bachelor’s degree in English.
In 1968, Sterk earned his master’s degree of Divinity from Western Theological Seminary.
He then began working as a missionary in Chiapas, Mexico.
In 1992, Sterk earned his PhD in Missiology from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena,
California.
Sterk regularly hosted spring mission trips in Chiapas, Mexico over a number of years,
including four for Hope College men’s basketball teams under the direction of then-Flying
Dutchmen head coach Glenn Van Wieren, his friend from college.
A former H-Club board member, Sterk helped establish a scholarship for children of
missionaries at Hope College. He taught Hope students enrolled in a “Mission Across
Cultures” course at Western Theological Seminary when the College’s ministry minor
began. He also mentored Hispanic pastors of the RCA and taught in the Commissioned
Pastors’ program through the RCA.
Sterk has received Distinguished Alumni Awards from Hope College and Western Theological
Seminary.
The Sterks have two children, Michele Schoon ‘91 and Shane Sterk.