Denver Seminary has long recognized the priority of preparing ministers to handle situations of crisis. This is evidenced in part by six counseling and chaplaincy track programs.

One product of the Denver program is Chaplain R. Wayne Hall, a graduate of the class of 2000 with a master of Divinity/Chaplaincy degree. Ironically, on the fateful day of 9-11, Hall was at the Pentagon interviewing for admission into the active duty United States Navy Chaplaincy.

After the plane hit, Hall returned to his hotel, which quickly became the center for family disaster response. Because of his seminary training, Hall was recruited as the point of contact for all chaplains who were on duty and responding to the tragedy.

Later, the Navy Chief of Chaplains executive officer reported to Denver Seminary's Jan McCormack, the seminary's director of chaplaincy and counseling training centers, that Hall was "better trained than most people who have been on active duty for ten to fifteen years." The officer added, "If this is the caliber of student you are producing at Denver Seminary, we'll take all you can get us."

Hall attributes this high praise for his ability to provide pastoral care in the heart of a crisis to the training he received at Denver Seminary, specifically to the mandatory Clinical Pastoral Education course and the personal involvement in his life and training by his Chaplaincy Training Center director.

—R.F.