2008 Woodie Awards
Half a Century Later Alumni Look Back
William Allison
Issue date: 5/6/08 Section: Spotlight
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"I had no clue this would be the story but I really did believe my life would be interesting," Kornfield said.
This May Kornfield and her former classmates celebrate the 50 year anniversary of their graduation from OU and took the time to look back on their life since they finished their academic career at the university.
Kornfield earned a degree in sociology before moving on to Union Theological Seminary in New York City. She spent time in the lower east side of Manhattan working for Mariner's Temple fighting poverty. She was one of the first women in the field of religion psychiatry dealing with marriage and family therapy and pastoral counseling and has been ordained as an American Baptist minister. She was traveling on the subway actually under the World Trade Center site during the September 11 attacks. She said that the attitudes towards Muslims after that day quickly turned hostile although many of the many of the Muslims who suffered abuse were American citizens. She has worked with the Muslims Emons Council and with the help of her book, "Cultivating Wholeness: A Guide to Care and Counseling in Faith Communities" has worked to bridge the cultural gap.
Kornfield said she never expected to a city person growing up in Grand Junction, Colo.
"Some people go to New York to become a New Yorker; I went to learn something," Kornfield said.
She believes that she was able to achieve and make the impacts she did because the world was ready for it at the time and she was at the right spot.
"The student movement was very strong in this country. It was serendipitous, I was at the right place at the right time," Kornfield said.
While change has been the theme for this year's election, Kornfield has been working for that and knows that change is difficult to achieve.
"It takes real courage. Practical on one hand, non-cynical on the other hand. The optimism and the vision to change our society," Kornfield said.
A former classmate of Kornfield, Chuck Walter, is also celebrating the 50 year anniversary of his graduation.
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