MOUNT VERNON — A Catholic laywoman from England who founded a haven for prostitutes in Chicago will talk about the intersection of faith and social justice in a lecture Thursday, Dec. 8, at Cornell College.

Edwina Gateley will give Cornell’s Small-Thomas Lecture on “One Woman’s Journey of Faith from the African Bush to the Bars and Brothels of Chicago” at 11 a.m. in Hedges Conference Room of The Commons. She will lead a discussion on feminism and Roman Catholic spirituality at 3:30 p.m. in Hedges. Both events are free and open to the public.

A poet, author and leader of retreats for abused and marginalized women, Gateley’s journey began when she left her native England in 1964 for Uganda, where she worked for four years as a teacher and lay missionary, starting a school for African girls. After returning to England, she founded the Volunteer Missionary Movement in 1969 to recruit, prepare and send missionaries to work in countries of the developing world. More than 1,700 missionaries have served, mainly in Africa, Papua New Guinea, Central and North America.

In the early ’80s, following nine months in prayer and solitude in a hermitage in Illinois, Gateley says she was called to work with prostitutes. She spent over a year on the streets, walking with the homeless and women in prostitution. In 1983 she founded Genesis House, which provides hospitality and nurturing for women involved in prostitution.

“I haven’t met a happy hooker yet. Most hate themselves for what they are and what they do,” she has said. She continues to assist with Exodus, a program in Chicago for women in the second phase of recovery from prostitution.

Her work and ministry have been honored by the late Cardinal Joseph Bernadin, former President Bill Clinton, the governor of Illinois and the mayor of Chicago. Among her numerous awards are the Oscar Romero Award, the Pope John XXIII Award, Catholic Woman of the Year in England and Wales and the Spirit of St. Francis Award for outstanding Catholic laywoman in Illinois.

Gateley’s 11 books include “There Was No Path, So I Trod One,” “A Mystical Heart,” “Psalms of a Laywoman,” “Christ in the Margins” and “Soul Sisters: Women in Scripture Speak to Women Today,” which won a Catholic Press Association Award. She holds a master’s degree in theology from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.

The Small-Thomas Lecture Series, which began in 2000, is funded by Richard Small, a past chair of the Cornell Board of Trustees and a 1950 graduate, and his wife, honorary alumna and trustee Norma Thomas Small. Previous speakers have included Sean Farren, a key negotiator in efforts to bring peace to Northern Ireland, and U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill.

MOUNT VERNON — The Cornell College Chamber Singers and Concert Choir will present their holiday concert, “The Peaceable Kingdom,” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3, in King Chapel. Admission is free.

The Concert Choir will perform “The Peaceable Kingdom,” American composer Randall Thompson’s 1935 work inspired by the paintings of Edward Hicks, a
19th-century folk artist and Pennsylvania Quaker minister who created nearly 100 paintings interpreting the biblical quotation beginning with Isaiah 11:6. Thompson’s piece has eight movements in widely diverse musical styles. The texts emphasize justice in the Kingdom of God, ranging in emotion from scenes of violence and despair to utterances of hope and joy.

The Chamber Singers open the performance with a program that includes a major work by French composer Claude Debussy, featuring a solo by Kara Stumpff, a junior from Norway, Iowa, and a solo quartet with seniors Erin Prall (Eagan, Minn.), Anna Hendricksen (Chicago, Ill.) and Joe Okell (Eagan, Minn.) and freshman Matt Roberts (Dunlap). The Chamber Singers also perform “Caritas et Amor,” composer Z. Randall Stroope’s piece based on a Gregorian chant, and close their half of the program with a spiritual by New Orleans composer Moses Hogan, “My Soul’s Been Anchored.”

The ensembles are directed by Lisa Hearne, associate professor of music and director of choral music. Accompanist is pianist Lynda Hakken.

MOUNT VERNON - Charles William “Bill” Heywood, one of the most distinguished figures in Cornell history, died Nov. 16, 2005, at his home in Mount Vernon, in the arms of his family, from complications of Parkinson’s disease. He was 84.

Bill was a Cornell College professor of history and dean of the college emeritus. He earned his bachelor of arts degree from Earlham College and his master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Pennsylvania. From 1949 to 1953 he taught history at the College of Wooster in Ohio. He joined the faculty at Cornell in 1954 and taught American, Latin American, and European history. In 1966 he introduced the first Cornell course on African-American history. He was active in the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and held offices in the national organization, serving two years as vice president. From 1983 until 1987 he served as dean of the college and, in 1994, as acting president for six months. He retired in 1987 and was a member of the Cornell College Board of Trustees from 1992 to 2002, when he became a life member. During his retirement, he co-authored the book, Cornell College: A Sesquicentennial History, with colleague Richard Thomas. The Delta of Iowa chapter of Phi Beta Kappa at Cornell College elected him as an honorary member in 1981, and the college bestowed on him the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree in 1987.

A leader in community affairs, Bill was on the Mount Vernon Board of Education from 1965 to 1971, serving as president from 1967 to 1971, and was elected to the Mount Vernon City Council for three terms.

Bill was born April 24, 1921, in Pittsburgh, Pa., the son of Charles Edwin and Marie Shrawder Heywood, and raised from age six in Dublin, Ind. He married Vivian Eleanor Yergey on June 30, 1950, in Wooster, Ohio.

In his roles as teacher, scholar, college administrator, and community leader, he was admired and respected for his compassion, warmth, fairness, humor, and humility. Above all he was a loving and dedicated husband and father, beloved by all his family and many devoted friends.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Vivian; son Philip and wife Paula of Minneapolis, daughter Ann and husband Philip of New York City, son Eric and wife Kristin of Los Angeles; three grandchildren: Ellie Heywood, and Zoe and Peter van Buren; brothers Robert and David Heywood, and sister, Marjorie Hornbrook.

A memorial service will be held at King Chapel on the Cornell campus at 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 27. A reception will follow. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts in support of the library endowment may be given to the Heywood Fund at Cornell College, Office of College Advancement, 600 First Street West, Mount Vernon, IA 52314.

MOUNT VERNON - Cornell will host poet Rustin Larson reading from his latest collection, “Crazy Star,” on Thursday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m. in Hedges Conference Room of The Commons. Admission is free.

“Crazy Star,” released this year, and “Loving the Good Driver” are Larson’s widely acclaimed books. He also has published in journals such as The New Yorker, The Midwest Quarterly, Defined Providence and several Iowa anthologies. He lives in Fairfield.

Larson’s Cornell appearance is part of the Visiting Writer Series sponsored by the English department.

MOUNT VERNON - A conference Nov. 17-18 at Cornell College will feature international food, live music, hands-on workshops and other presentations to help area residents explore the many languages and cultures represented in eastern Iowa, along with the human rights challenges facing people in local communities and abroad.

Titled “A World of Difference: Languages, Cultures, and Human Rights,” the conference goal is to encourage students and other area residents to become more committed to language study, more fluent in global cultures and more aware of how language and culture impact human rights. This training can help prepare students to become global citizens.

Featured events include a lecture Thursday, Nov. 17, by Chris Rossi, former director of human rights on the National Security Council during the Clinton presidency and current executive director of Humanities Iowa. His talk, “No Ifs, Ands or Buts: Language as a Human Right,” is at 6:30 p.m. in Hedges Conference Room, The Commons.

On Friday, Nov. 18, approximately 280 area high school students will be on campus to participate in workshops. From 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., Kol Shira will present a musical performance of traditional Yiddish, Hebrew, Latino and Russian music on the Orange Carpet in The Commons. The conference will conclude Friday afternoon with “Cultural Kaleidoscope,” a fair on the Orange Carpet for local elementary school students featuring games, dances, music, art, language, food, clothing, story-telling, pictures, currency and traditions from around the world. Students must be accompanied by a guardian.

All conference programming is free and open to the public.

MOUNT VERNON - An exhibition of paintings by Nanci Erskine and Leslie Bell opens Sunday, Nov. 6, in the Peter Paul Luce Gallery of McWethy Hall. A closing reception is Sunday, Dec. 4, from 2 to 5 p.m., including an artist talk at 3:30 p.m. in 222A McWethy.

Erskine earned an MA/MFA from the University of Iowa. She has taught painting and drawing at Morehead State University, the College of William and Mary and Colorado State University, and she has been a visiting artist at Southern Methodist University and Coe College. She is represented by Francine Seders Gallery of Seattle.

Bell received an MFA in painting from Northern Illinois University and is an art professor at St. Ambrose University. His work is featured in numerous public collections, including the Erie (Pa.) Art Museum, Ohio State University, the Society of Contemporary Photographers (Kansas City), and the Davenport Museum of Art. He is represented by Quad City Arts, Rock Island.

Luce Gallery hours are 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Admission is free.