Northland College awarded Campus Minister David Saetre yesterday with the degree, Doctor of Human Letters, honoris causa, "for his abiding concern for others, the search for meaning in an unjust world, and his remarkable grace."
The following is taken from the citation presented to Saetre at awards ceremony.
David Saetre, early in your career, as a Lutheran minister you served numerous congregations with grace, compassion, and wisdom. In 1996 you brought all those characteristics to Northland College as our campus minister. While serving as campus minister you have been honored on numerous occasions as the Staff Person of the Year and the Faculty Person of the Year.
These honors have been bestowed by both the students and faculty of Northland. You have served Northland in every conceivable fashion. You have pushed this institution and its students, faculty, and staff to think deeply, to act morally, and to live up to our mission of inclusiveness and environmental stewardship.
Today, we honor you for your service to Northland College, the United Church of Christ, the Wisconsin Humanities Council, the Chequamegon Unitarian Universalist Congregation, and numerous other organizations. Your commitment to seeking and embodying truth and justice have made you a respected contributor to every organization you have been a part of.
As a member of the United Church of Christ Council for Higher Education, you pushed for greater inclusiveness of, and a deeper commitment to, environmental justice. You have served as a ministry partner with the Chequamegon Unitarian Universalist Congregation for fifteen years and helped it grow into a thriving spiritual community.
As a member of the Wisconsin Humanities Council, you have dedicated yourself to building community and acceptance through the humanities. Your unflinching commitment to helping people grow both spiritually and intellectually has been a hallmark of your time as the campus minister of Northland College. You have been a soothing presence in times of sorrow, the voice of reason during times of conflict, and an enthusiastic leader in times of celebration.
Your words and deeds have meant so much to so many at Northland College. This place and the people that make it so special have relied on you to be our foundation.