Covenant News

Roger, Eileen Thorpe to be Honored by North Park University

CHICAGO, IL (August 7, 2001) - Dr. Roger and Eileen Thorpe will be honored by North Park University during the university's gala reunion October 6 - the reunion is part of North Park's Homecoming weekend October 5-7.

They will join an elite group - currently 59 members - in receiving the university's Distinguished Alumna(us) Award, which includes a North Park University chair inscribed with the university seal and a plaque bearing their names. Recipients are selected based on service to North Park University, professional achievements and contributions to society.

Both individuals are graduates of North Park College (now university) and have been regular financial supporters of the school, including the three decades they served as Covenant missionaries in Africa.

The Thorpes reflected on the recent telephone call they received from North Park University President David Horner. They wondered if perhaps they had forgotten to send their annual support check. Instead, they learned that the university wanted to give them the 2001 Distinguished Alumna(us) Award presented annually by the school.

From 1966 until 1996, Roger and Eileen served as missionaries in Africa, primarily at the Karawa station in what is now known as Congo. Roger, a physician, performed on average two or three surgeries each day along with numerous patient evaluations. Thorpe and his assistants served an area with a population of approximately 300,000 people. Thorpe helped mentor three national doctors who currently are responsible for medical care in Karawa, an area that includes three hospitals and 40 rural health centers.

"The most satisfying thing was leaving some trained nationals, both doctors and nurses," says Thorpe, now a part-time physician at Swedish Covenant Hospital in Chicago. "All of the doctors there said that of the three aspects we had - medical education, acute and preventive medicine - medical education was the most important. When I went back for a visit in 1998, it felt so good to see what all those guys were doing in spite of all of the problems. That was extremely satisfying."

Thorpe is also pleased that his wife, Eileen, who was valedictorian of her class at North Park, was recognized for her contributions at the Karawa station. Besides helping raise four children, she served as station hostess for guests, taught music at the local missionary school, worked as an accountant and served as short-term director for Zaire for nearly a decade.

"It's nice to be honored along with my husband," says Eileen, who is employed by the Department of World Mission of the Evangelical Covenant Church. "It's easy to single out the doctor because what he has done is significant and noticeable. But, I always felt a part of Roger's work just by carrying the rest of the load."

Roger and Eileen met at North Park and married after the two went to the University of Michigan, where Roger finished medical school and Eileen completed her nursing degree program.

In 1991, most Covenant missionaries had to evacuate Zaire due to war, but the Thorpes stayed behind to help in the medical transition process before leaving for the United States. When they returned in 1992, the medical mission was still going and the Thorpes served four more years before retiring. In 1994, the Thorpes received an award - the Commander of the National Order of Zaire, which is one of the highest honors given in that country. In addition to advancing the mission work, the Thorpes helped develop a French-speaking church for those at the Karawa station.

The Thorpe children - all North Park graduates - have provided many fond memories for their parents. Dr. Charles Thorpe, the recipient of North Park's Distinguished Alumni Lecturer Award in 1988, is director of the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He attends Stoneridge Covenant Church in nearby Allison Park.

Dr. Doug Thorpe is an ordained Covenant pastor serving as a pastoral counselor in Washington. He is also a college professor. Christine Olfelt is co-director of the Bethlehem Child Care Center at Bethlehem Covenant Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Laurie Thorpe is an obstetrician and gynecologist at Swedish Covenant Hospital and, like her parents, attends North Park Covenant Church in Chicago. Dad admits, "It's fun having her on the same staff, even though the mail gets mixed up."

In case anyone wondered whether the Thorpes were ready to rest on their laurels, think again. Roger made a hole-in-one at the Golf For Kids fund-raiser co-sponsored by North Park University and Covenant Harbor Bible Camp last May in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. He also regularly plays tennis on Saturday mornings and traveled to Ethiopia in July for a medical mission trip with the Christian Medical and Dental Association and Prison Fellowship International. Meanwhile, Eileen is part of the bell choir and plays the piano at the early Sunday morning worship services at North Park Covenant.

For more information about the Distinguished Alumna(us) Award or the event to honor the Thorpes October 6, call Rebecca Newhouse at North Park University, 773-244-5796, or email her at rnewhouse@northpark.edu.

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