Monthly Archives: March 2023

Five Bible Verses To Bring You Joy 

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We go through our days meeting life’s obligations one after the other, but do you ever stop to take a moment to enjoy the pleasures God has given you? If you are lacking joy today, here are five Bible verses to bring you joy. 

Psalm 20: 4-5 

“May he grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans! May we shout for joy over your salvation, and in the name of our God set up our banners! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions!”

Romans 15:13 

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

Romans 12:12 

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” 

James 1:2-3

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”

Psalm 16:11 

“You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”

May you feel the joys in life that God gives you every day. 

Senior Spotlight: Theodora Sirghi

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We want to highlight one of our seniors, Theodora Sirghi. Theodora is from Queens, New York, and is completing her B.S. in Emergency Services, Paramedic. What made her decide to attend PUC was the academics provided. “I was astonished to hear that PUC not only has an emergency service department, but you can also get a degree out of it rather than if you were to take a week/month course online,” shares Theodora. “Seeing that automatically grabbed my attention since that is what I specifically wanted to pursue.”

What is your dream job? 

My dream job is to be a paramedic firefighter.

How does that compare to what you wanted to be when you were young? 

When I was younger, I didn’t exactly know what I wanted to do, however I was always fascinated by the medical field especially since my older sister was in medical school at that time which inspired me. I wanted to pursue in something where I can help people 24/7 whenever and wherever and be able to give back to my community. 

What is your favorite thing about being a part of the Pioneers family? 

My favorite thing about being part of the Pioneers family is the diversity that is spread throughout the students here at PUC. You come across so many students who are not just from other parts of California but from other parts of the world and it’s just fascinating. 

Where is your favorite place in the world? 

My favorite place in the world would have to be my home, which is New York. One of the biggest pros of being born and raised in New York is that you’re in the heart of everything. The fast pace, the buzzing traffic, the hustle, and bustle of the people, the 24-hour life and the creative spirit make NYC one of the most vibrant places in the world. 

If you had to be trapped in a movie for a day, what movie would you choose? 

If I had to be trapped in a movie for a day it would have to be between either Terminator or Aliens. There’s not much of an explanation as to why I would choose these movies however, I simply love both movies due to growing up watching them on a daily. 

What is something you’re passionate about? 

Something I’m very passionate about is music. There are so many different styles and genres. Music is relaxing to me especially when I’m able to just grab my guitar and be able to play while soothing into the flow of the music.  It’s more than just a sound; it’s an art with rhythm, tune, emotion, and meaning. It has helped me face some difficult situations in the past. Some music even resembles the journey of my life. 

Recommend a place to go in the Bay Area on a weekend

A place I recommend to go in the Bay Area on a weekend is Baker Beach located in San Francisco. It’s absolutely one of the best beaches in my opinion. You’ll find amazing views of the Golden Gate Bridge and it’s even more of a bonus if you go around sunset time. 

Faces of PUC: Daniel Randall

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Meet one of our newest Pioneers, Daniel Randall. He’s a freshman from Berrien Springs, Michigan, studying environmental science. Daniel loves being outdoors, which is why he decided to attend PUC, because of the college’s location and being “a great starting point for many outdoor adventures.”

What is your dream job? 

I want to do some kind of environmental conservation work. 

How does that compare to what you wanted to be when you were young? 

I would say that my current carrier goals are pretty far astray from when I was a kid. I always wanted to be a rock-star. 

What is your favorite thing about being a part of the Pioneers family? 

My favorite part about being a part of the Pioneers’ Family is the people! I love the small campus feel and the ability to meet and know so many people’s names instead of just their faces. I love making new friends so come and talk to me. 

Where is your favorite place in the world? 

My favorite place in the world is really anywhere where I am in the woods. 

If you had to be trapped in a movie for a day, what movie would you choose?

I would love to be trapped in the cinematic masterpiece that is Holes.

What is something you’re passionate about? 

I would say that two things that I am really passionate about are the proper teeth brushing order (water, toothpaste, water, then brush) and Patagonia Synchillas.

Recommend a place to go in the Bay Area on a weekend 

There are many places in the Bay Area that are really cool! But if I had to say one it would be Muir Woods National Monument. 

Meet PUC’s SA: Natalia Gomez, VP of Publication & Marketing 

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Natalia Gomez is this year’s SA VP of Publication & Marketing. She’s in charge of running SA’s social media accounts, creating all the visuals for their announcements and events, and in charge of designing their merch. Running their social accounts has given Natalia an “inside scoop” on how the student body feels about their events and allowed her to connect with more people. 

Natalia answered some questions for us to learn more about being a part of SA. 

What do you enjoy the most about being SA VP of Publication and Marketing? 

It might sound silly but I honestly love getting to read all the DMs, comments, and answers to polls or questions that get put on our Instagram accounts. It’s like an inside scoop as to how the student body feels or thinks about events, and it’s also allowed me to get to know more people!

What is the most important part of your role?

I would say that the most important part of my role is communication. It’s my job to communicate with other members of the team to get all the necessary information to create posts. Then I have to communicate those details across social media to the student body. I also check in with all the DMs for any questions or suggestions that SA gets through our @puc.sa & @withmewednesdays accounts on Instagram. 

What do you like the most about being a part of SA? 

I really love our team’s dynamic! I think it’s really special to get to be a part of a group that all have different majors and are a part of different departments or groups on campus. Without SA I’m not sure if we would have all met and gotten the chance to see each other on a weekly basis. Plus our group chat is really funny and it always makes me laugh. 

What goals do you have set for the rest of the school year with SA and the campus? 

One of my biggest goals right now is working on an SA march drop and possibly making it accessible online, so stay tuned!

Do you have a favorite SA event? If so, which one and why? 

Well during fall quarter my favorite SA event is the corn maze in Petaluma! I love getting to go and find my way out of the maze while scaring my friends or them scaring me. Although I also love the excuse to dress up and take photos with friends so banquet is always special to me. I think this year’s banquet will be bittersweet since it’ll be my last and graduation will be right around the corner. 

Can you share any events that will be happening this quarter?

There’s so many plans for the rest of the year! Of course we will have poor mans banquet, actual banquet and hopefully a spirit week! A future even I’m looking forward to is a rollerskating night. I’m determined to be able to roller-skate without holding onto a friend for dear life!

What are your favorite things about PUC? 

I really love all the nature that we are surrounded by here at PUC. One of my favorite things to do on the weekends is grab a blanket and have a picnic or read out in on of the grassy areas. The grove is one of my favorite places for some quiet time, and in the spring its a great place to escape the heat on campus! Hammocking is also a lot of fun once the weather gets a bit sunnier!

An Evening with Actor Eli Goree

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Last month, Canadian actor Eli Goree sat down with PUC students to discuss his experience working in Hollywood as an Adventist. With being typecast for roles, such as playing an athlete, he pushed against that. “I remember having a conversation with my team and not going for certain things, and a lot of it was because of my Adventist convictions,” said Eli. 

He refused to do horror movies or nudity and wouldn’t use God’s name in vain in films. “I think that’s one thing artists don’t do enough of is putting up boundaries. You can’t really do art if you don’t have clear set guidelines of what it is you’re trying to do,” he said. “And when you are the art- when you’re an actor, you have to say, ‘okay, this is what I do, and this is what I don’t do.”  

Eli wasn’t born into the Adventist church but attended church as an adult. “I really didn’t know a lot- I learned bit by bit,” shared Eli. “When I learned about the Sabbath, I put it in my contracts and said I’m going to keep the Sabbath.” At first, it was a problem with people telling him that if he kept the Sabbath, they would not hire him. When Eli got his first big opportunity in Hollywood (a role for the TV series The 100), he made sure not to work on Sabbath- but his contract stated otherwise, writing: will do best efforts. With confusion as to what that truly meant, Eli’s agent told him that he would be fine and taken care of, and it was written like that in the contract for legal purposes. Within the first week of shooting, the show made Eli shoot his biggest scene on a Friday night, which lasted till seven in the morning. “I was so tired I couldn’t go to church.”

While being on The 100, Eli couldn’t accept other major roles since the show had first right of refusal. His character was later killed off and the show didn’t pick up his option. “From that whole thing, it was an experience for me faith wise,” said Eli. “I was trying so hard to do everything for them and they weren’t trying to do anything for me. They were just focused on them.” He knew this would be the last time this happened and not work on Saturdays. 

From that moment on, things started to pick up momentum. Eli screentest for movies such as Star Wars, met well-known directors and booked the movie Race (2016). “It was always in my contacts from then on, ‘he doesn’t work on Sabbath’”. 

Eli is known for his award-winning portrayal of great American Olympian athlete Dave Albritton in Race (2016). He also starred in Regina King’s feature film directorial debut, One Night in Miami…, and his roles in TV Series The 100 (2014), Ballers (2018), Riverdale (2018), and Pearson (2019). Eli has a diploma in Film and Television acting from the Canadian Film Center for the Arts.