Cornerstone Bookstore: don't judge a book by its cover

Dale and Liz Halligan's hearts have long been open to international students, but with the Nov. 30 opening of Cornerstone Bookstore, the couple created tangible space for building relationships. Dale and Liz have taught overseas for numerous years, allowing them to work with international students within their own cultural settings. Most recently the couple taught in Japan for three years, returning in 2009. Before that they taught in Africa for five years. Dale's wife, Liz Halligan, is the manager of Cornerstone. Together with Dale, Liz said, "We [have established a place] where college kids international students in particular can interact. We want it to be a welcoming and warm place where people like to hang out." For visiting scholar Chenyuan Li, meeting the Halligans meant spending a week in their home. Li said that when she first came to America, Dale and Liz "allowed us to live with them for a week until we found a place to live. [They are] very friendly, warm hearted [and] gave us a lot of help." International students and scholars, like Li, Xiuyan Zhao and Xiaojun Tang, have continued to seek that aid in their transition to America within the walls of Cornerstone-either gathered for conversation on the small couch in the store itself or in the official International Students, Inc. (ISI) office where Dale works. Although new to Monmouth, this format of Christian bookstore/non-profit organization catered to international students and their social, religious and educational needs is not an entirely new concept. Liz stated that, "This format has been done in Tempe, Ariz. for 40 years, [so we] patterned our bookstore after it," while Dale added that "[his format] was started by Elmer Heibert and has expanded to multiple universities such as the University of Washington and Arizona State University."

Beyond the Bookstore Although Cornerstone is a small bookstore, not much larger than the average living room, it not only offers a few hundred books, but also a location close to campus where students can gather and discuss a number of topics. "There needs to be alternative [places for college students to interact.] This is an alternative," Liz said when speaking about the other offerings enclosed within the walls of Cornerstone. Dale added that "It was started not to sell books as much as to be a meeting place for people to come hang out and have discussions." Topics of discussion range from casual conversations about everyday life, education and, "if they desire, we will talk [about] Christianity with them. It is entirely their choice," Dale said. Some of the authors Cornerstone sells include Ted Dekker, Anne Rice, Rob Bell, Donald Miller and Francis Chan. In addition to Christian fiction, Cornerstone sells Bibles, Bible Study books and children's books. "We provide Christian fiction, Christian classics and [books] that challenge people's thinking," Liz said about the materials sold at Cornerstone. "We specialize partially in children's books."

Making international friendships Although Cornerstone is a new establishment, Dale and his wife have been offering international students' friendship for two decades. Working closely with Western's international office, Dale contacts the new international students every year to make them aware of what ISI offers them. This year there were about 30 new international students, and Dale has been in contact with all of them. However, Dale said of the over 300 international students at Western, "we probably have [worked] with one-third to one-half of them [since the beginning of] this [school] year." "I've been working with International Students, Inc. for 20 years in Monmouth. Since then, we've offered free lunches, conversation and friendship to international students," Dale said. In weekly conversation classes, "we choose the topics," Li said. "Sometimes we pick up a book and talk about it." Conversation classes also include learning about vocabulary and "listening to [international students] and befriending them," Dale added. Dale said ISI arranges conversation partners in the community, home stays as well as Friday night get-togethers for international students, "Friday night at the Farm." "We also have field trips at times, [including trips to] Crater Lake [and] Seattle," he said. "We've also assisted [international students] in finding apartments and cars," Dale continued. "We had one girl from Tokyo who got here and asked 'Where's the subway?' This is how different it is for an international student going from a large city to a city like Monmouth." In addition to helping international students at Western, Dale extends his services to their families: he currently teaches English to Li, Zhao and Tang's children, ages 5, 9 and 12, every Tuesday afternoon.

International connections and lifelong friends Dale and Liz's goal is to befriend international students to help them better acclimate to the U.S. culture. "We befriend international students because we know what it is like to be a foreigner," Dale said. "You have friends forever." Cornerstone is open Mon. through Thur. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Fri. and Sat. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.