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Founders’ Day is a time when Luther College pauses to honour the individuals whose contributions allow the College to pursue its mission and fulfill its vision. The day is named in recognition of all those people, past and present, who have participated in the establishment and growth of the College.

Founders' Day 2009

“And now abideth faith, hope and charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity”—(I Corinthians 13:13 KJV)

On Saturday 14 November, friends of Luther College gathered to celebrate the charitable spirit of Luther alumni and friends. Guests were entertained by the talented students of Luther College high school as they performed a variety of scenes from the recently staged musical Anne of Green Gables. 

Dr Perlson formally welcomed a number of individuals into the Founders’ Society.  Although Soren and Caroline Oberg were unable to attend, a formal thank you for their generosity was given.  Accepting the recognition on behalf of Arnold Tiefenbach were his children, Karl, Joan and Mark. Dr Perlson and his wife Cherry Perlson were also welcomed into the Founders’ Society. 

Also recognised for her outstanding contribution to Luther College was Mrs Gail Fry. For nearly 25 years Gail has organised the school’s annual musical. She announced this year that the 2009 production would be her last.

Graduating into the Founders’ Society

Soren and Caroline Oberg

There was never any doubt that Luther College high school would play a role in Soren Oberg’s life. When Soren was born his father was interning under Dick Stark.  Having been given the middle name “Luther” it appeared to be decided already where Soren would be spending his high school years. Indeed, Soren did spend his high school years at his namesake, taking advantage of everything Luther had to offer academically, including every class available – all the sciences and maths, French, German, Latin and even IB classes when these were first introduced to the College. One day Soren stopped by Pastor C’s office to inquire about applying to US colleges in hopes of landing a hockey scholarship. Pastor C strongly suggested Soren cast his net a little farther than just a ‘hockey school’ and Soren did. Although he claims to have rushed his application, Soren’s marks, athletics, and SRC experiences landed him not only entrance to, but a scholarship at, Harvard University near Boston. After completing his undergraduate degree Soren worked in New York City before moving to Thomas H. Lee Partners in Boston, a private equity firm. He then decided to return  to Harvard for a MBA where he met Caroline, a Princeton grad also heading to Harvard Business School. The two were married and now have 4 young sons, ages 6, 4, 3, and 1. The boys have been taught all things Canadian are good – making them some of the very few Montreal Canadiens fans in a city of Bruins.

Soren’s career at Thomas H. Lee continues, where he is now a managing director and is involved on many boards of major, global corporations. But he is most proud of his board work with BELL, Building Educated Leaders for Life. BELL’s mission is to dramatically increase the academic achievements, self-esteem and life opportunities of (elementary school-aged) children living in low-income, urban communities. The organization has had dramatic, sustained success in improving math and reading proficiency amongst its young “scholars.”

Soren Luther Oberg gives back to Luther College because he says “it is important to sustain the school to provide the impact a Luther education has.” Soren serves as an example of how a Luther education can be applied to enrich the lives of others and to ultimately make the world a better place.

Pastor Arnold Tiefenbach (posthumously)

It was in January of 1927 when Luther College was introduced to Arnold Tiefenbach. As a boy of 13 years of age, Arnold walked through the doors of Luther College as an eager student. Whether he knew it at that time, he was to maintain a very close connection to the College throughout his life. In 1931, after a fruitful four years, Arnold graduated from high school and went on to finish his first year of university at Luther College. For a period of time, Arnold left the Luther campus to further his education, first attending “normal school” to become a teacher during the dirty thirties, then completing undergraduate degrees at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, and Wartburg Seminary in Dubuque Iowa emerging as a Lutheran Pastor in 1942. After a few years in parish ministry in Saskatchewan, Arnold followed in the footsteps of other Luther College “pillars” such as Fred Wagner and Henry Ast: he returned to his alma mater as a part of the staff, taking on the position of the Dean of Men in 1949 – a position perhaps as challenging as it was fulfilling. Arnold continued his pursuit of higher education and a wife during summer sessions in New York City at Columbia University, capturing Marge in 1951 and an M.A. in 1954. Arnold served as the Dean of Men until 1953 and as a faculty member until 1969. In spite of his formal retirement Arnold made every effort to attend events such as LIT, the fall Musical, the Candlelight Service, and the Baccalaureate and Closing Exercises throughout the remainder of his life, to show his ongoing love, enjoyment and support of Luther College. In the 1950 yearbook Arnold encouraged his students to pursue their goals passionately, whatever these may be, suggesting that “if it is a God-pleasing work it is honourable and you will be blessed in it.” There is no doubt that Arnold’s role as a student, a dean, and a teacher was honourable; there is also no doubt that Luther College was blessed to simply have known Arnold. The respect and admiration Arnold bestowed towards Luther College is very much a mutually-shared sentiment. For the legacy he leaves behind, Arnold will be forever remembered; for his generosity, Luther College will be forever grateful.

Dr Bruce Perlson and Cherry Perlson

Dr Bruce Perlson attended Luther College high school from 1959 until his graduation in 1962, and stayed on at the College for his first year of university. Bruce obtained a BA (Honours) and PhD in chemistry from the University of Saskatchewan, followed by two postdoctoral fellowships in Canada and the US. Cherry Perlson attended Scott Collegiate in Regina and studied at the U of S, completing an honours degree in microbiology. She remembers being a cheerleader for one of the visiting teams at LIT during the 1960s, and has vivid, positive memories of this hallmark College event. Bruce and Cherry married in 1974, and moved to the United States in 1975. Later, both pursued careers in the chemical industry. They have two children who presently reside in Ohio. Bruce left the chemical industry in 2003 after serving as Vice President and Business Leader with a global petrochemicals company in Cincinnati. Bruce then joined Luther College as president in 2005 with the goal of “maintaining Luther as an academically distinctive institution noted for its excellence while putting Luther College in a position to renew its facilities.” Bruce and Cherry feel that “Luther College is one of the great institutions of Regina and of this province—it serves its students well. As a result, it deserves the support of those who benefited from an education within its walls, or have otherwise been ‘touched’ by the institution.”