Canada – Houghton STAR

Two months ago, Houghton College welcomed new librarian, Doyin Adenuga, to campus. With a background in electronic resources and librarian studies, Adenuga’s experience made him more than qualified for the job here at Houghton.

Photo by: Nate Moore

According to Adenuga, he and his family have lived in the United States and Canada for 12 years. Before moving to the U.S. in 2004, Adenuga was born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria, formerly the capital city of Nigeria, where he met his now wife. He went on to study electronic technologies at Obafeni Awolowo University in Osun State, Nigeria. After marrying in Nigeria, Adenuga and his wife relocated to Wisconsin for four years at the University of Wisconsin. The transition from Nigeria to the U.S. was a cold one when the Adenuga’s arrived in the winter, but after some time, he adjusted from the 90-degree weather of home to the brutal winter temperatures in Wisconsin.

From there, Adenuga and his wife moved to Canada where he worked for a private company and earned his masters degree in library and informational studies. Before his most recent move, Adenuga and his family lived and worked in Missouri until he heard about a new position. After finding an open librarian position at Houghton College on a job search website, Doyin Adenuga applied, interviewed and accepted the position here as the electronic resources librarian.

“Doyin is a wonderful addition to our library family,” said Sharleen Holmes, Houghton Library Operations Manager. “Because of his vast experience with webpage design, one of the first tasks he was given was updating and making our library webpage more intuitive and user friendly.”

Adenuga has already made significant changes to the library technologies including the catalog, web page, and databases, according to David Stevick, Director of Libraries and Information Resources. He added that Adenuga has stepped up to the challenge of a new web page design by making a more functional, user-friendly and attractive library web page. He also maintains the electronic and E-book databases for the library and assists at the research desk.

Along with Adenuga’s skills and expertise, he has high respect for Houghton as a Christian institution. The connection between his faith and this librarian position is one of the reasons the job opening appealed to Adenuga. Holmes said, “He’s very kind, intelligent, and patient, especially with those of us who aren’t anywhere near as tech savvy as he is. His knowledge and talents round out the expertise of our librarians nicely and we feel fortunate to have him here in the library.”

The Buffalo Region, including numerous Houghton College students, alumni, faculty, and staff residing in the Buffalo area, were hit by a large winter storm Tuesday morning. The storm, which originated in Siberia, formed when a high-pressure system over the West Coast stretched up through Alaska and a low-pressure system over central U.S. created a trough. Cold air then migrated over the North Pole, and rolled South through the trough, which resulted in freezing temperatures across Canada and the entirety of the U.S., according to PBS. Record low temperatures were reported across all 50 states and reached areas as far as parts of the Caribbean.

Southern areas of Buffalo received upwards of 60 inches in less than 24 hours, and as of Wednesday, were projected to accumulate two and a half additional feet overnight. Sarah Stupke, a senior who is student teaching in Buffalo this semester, said, “I have never seen so much snow in my entire life.” The snow crippled the area, shutting down Interstate 90, leaving people stranded in their cars for days at a time. The amount and weight of the snow made rescue efforts difficult, resulting in in a total of seven storm related fatalities. One of those fatalities was the death of a 49-year-old man in Alden, whose car was buried in 12 to 15 feet of snow when he was found.

Houghton professors who live in or around the Buffalo area have taken precautions in regards to commuting to work by cancelling class or holding classes via Skype. Some students, however, have had no choice but to prolong their travel plans. Hayley Day, a senior who is studying off campus in Buffalo this semester, was stranded in Washington D.C. when flights on Monday were cancelled. As of Wednesday night, Day doesn’t know when she’ll be able to fly back to Buffalo.

In addition to impacting the Buffalo area, the closed interstate and roads have affected the Houghton College campus, prolonging the delivery of fruit for Sodexo food services. The storm has also prevented the trip to Buffalo, organized by the senior class, to watch the premiere of The Hunger Games: Mocking Jay Part 1 in Cheektowaga.

The snow didn’t only bury airports and interstates, but also covered schools and homes. Ryan O’Vell, a senior who is also student teaching in Buffalo this semester, said, “The school I am supposed to be teaching at is buried under several feet of snow. I have only gone to school Monday, and it looks like that may be all for this week.”

While some were prevented from going to work, many Buffalo residents have been unable to leave their homes. Both Stupke and Josh Phelps, a 2014 graduate, have been unable to leave their residences. “We’ve gotten about 5 feet of snow, and can’t really leave the house without getting lost in the snow,” Stupke said. “Today was the first we were finally able to see the houses across the street for the first time since Monday night.”

Phelps, however, is maintaining a positive attitude and considers himself lucky. “Because of the road closures and travel bans I haven’t been able to go anywhere including work. Luckily we have enough food and everything, so not leaving the house isn’t a big deal,” he said. “We didn’t get too much snow here, at least compared to just a couple miles north like my uncle, who lives in West Seneca, has about 4.5 feet of snow and has been trapped in his house since Monday night. I talked to him today, and he doesn’t think he’ll be able to get out until this weekend at the earliest.”

Despite the trials that the storm presented, the people of Buffalo have pulled together to help one another. The Buffalo Bills, in need of assistance clearing their stadium in preparation for their upcoming game on Sunday against the New York Jets, offered locals $10 an hour for shoveling snow, and even game tickets depending on how many hours they worked.

Sarah Hutchinson, a 2014 graduate, said Buffalo has been living up to it’s title as the ‘City of Good Neighbors.’ “I’ve been hearing many stories of Buffalonians doing all they can to help each other out,” she said. “Yesterday, I talked to a guy who spent his morning rescuing six Burmese refugees who were trapped in the snow after working a midnight shift. Stories like this really make me appreciate where I live, even if it snows five feet before Thanksgiving.”

Stupke is asking for prayers, not for herself, but for those who the storm has left stranded. “Please pray for all of those who are stranded without food, or are in their cars,” Stupke said. “Pray that people get to them soon, and get them to safety.”