Bethel College president shuns lawsuit filed by fan
Raymond Brandt called the reporter three times and visited the news room, to repeat the same quote:
"Bethel College has had nothing to do with this, nothing at all," he said. "There's been no contact from Bethel at all. This has been my own thing."
Brandt, a Bethel College sports booster who gave $60,000 to support Thresher projects, has sued USD 410 to keep it from giving more than $2 million in bond money to renovate, co-own, and maintain Reimer Field with rival Tabor College.
Officials from both colleges pulled near to the fray over the weekend, distanced themselves from Brandt's lawsuit, and the rivalry's undertow.
Brandt was acting alone with no coaching from the sidelines by Bethel College, said college president Barry Bartel.
After he was briefed on the suit, Bartel, who is an attorney, said, "I can't speak to his motivation, but the fact that Mr. Brandt has supported Bethel doesn't have anything to do with the suit. It appears that as resident of Hillsboro, he's concerned about funding mechanisms for the stadium.
"Obviously he's not doing this on behalf of Bethel," Bartel added. "I wouldn't even dignify the Bethel connection by saying that. It doesn't seem to me like a Bethel-Tabor issue."
At Tabor, board of directors chairman Lyndon Vix, also an attorney, was quick to point out that Tabor College was not named in the lawsuit.
"We're not a party to the lawsuit and no one will be participating on Tabor behalf as a party to the lawsuit," Vix said. "It's a taxpayer suit and it's directed at the entity to which the taxpayer pays taxes, which is the district. Tabor is not a public entity that would be a target in this type of a suit."
Vix is a member of the joint stadium task force with Tabor and USD 410 that put together the co-ownership agreement, which is the focus of Brandt's lawsuit.
"We're obviously disappointed that someone would go to these lengths to try to derail a project that is obviously so beneficial to the entire community," Vix said.
"From Tabor's perspective, we intend to move forward with raising funds for the project. and working with USD 410 in the planning process."
Vix, refused to throw stones at Brandt, or play the rivalry trump card.
"This isn't about a Tabor-Bethel thing at all from my perspective," Vix said. "And I'm not going to get into a position of making it such."
The rivalry between Tabor and Bethel goes beyond the playing fields. Four of the Mennonite churches in Hillsboro are divided in alliance to both schools.
The Hillsboro Mennonite Brethren Church and Parkview Mennonite Brethren Church belong to the U.S. Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (USMB). These churches and organization are affiliated with Tabor College.
Trinity Mennonite Church and Hillsboro Mennonite Church (where Brandt attends) belong to Mennonite Church USA. These churches and organization are affiliated with Bethel College, in North Newton.
Bethel president Bartel said the rivalry doesn't reach the college president's offices.
"I know [Tabor College president] Larry Nikkel well and consider him a friend and colleague," Bartel said.
Nikkel was out of town and unavailable for comment.
