NORFOLK — There’s a catch in Robert Sandford’s voice as he talks about retiring.
After all, Sandford has set a national record serving 41 years as a Baptist campus minister — 39 of them at Old Dominion University in Norfolk. That’s longer than any Southern Baptist campus minister, according to data compiled by LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, which monitors campus ministry around the country.
Sandford said he’ll miss the energy of college students. “There’s something to that old cliché that being around young people keeps you young,” said Sandford, who turned 66 on June 5, his last day at ODU. “There is that everyday excitement about life that college students have that unfortunately a lot of senior adults don’t have.”
Sandford and his wife, Bettina, came to ODU in 1970, when tie-dye shirts were the prevalent fashion and the Vietnam War was a focus of campus discussion.
Robert Y. Sandford (right), who retired June 5 as Baptist campus minister at Old Dominion University, was honored, along with his wife, Bettina, at a luncheon at the Virginia Baptist Mission Board in May. At left is VBMB executive director John Upton.
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“Certainly the ministry has changed over the years,” Sandford said. “But the purpose has not. It’s still a fellowship with programming. Students come here because they enjoy each others’ company, but there’s also direction, with Bible studies, retreats, socials and missions.”
One of the greatest changes Sandford has noted is that the majority of students who now come to the Baptist Collegiate Ministry are not Baptist.
“There’s less and less concern for denominational identity anymore,” Sandford said. “The bigger issue now is, ‘Do I feel comfortable with this group of people? Are they warm and friendly and inviting or are they judgemental?’ ”
More than 150 students use the center annually. A student council leadership team of about a dozen plan and coordinate activities.
Because of Sandford’s long tenure, he has had the opportunity to minister to several generations — in recent years meeting students who are the children of former students.
The attraction of campus ministry is that you’re talking about issues that are going to be life-changing issues,” Sandford said.
“I talk to students that are alumni now who made some of those decisions right here, maybe with me. Maybe you didn’t even know it was happening while we were doing some stuff together, but later they come back and say, ‘You don’t know this, but way back when, such and such happened and that really changed my life.’ ”
The Sandfords were both involved in campus ministries as students, and have served at ODU as a team.
“It has been our life,” Bettina Sandford said, her eyes welling with tears. “I’ll really miss having such a sense of purpose and meaning.”
Bettina, whom Sandford refers to as his chief encourager and organizer, said the ministry was a calling.
“We were both involved in campus ministries when we were in college,” Bettina Sandford said. “So we felt drawn to it.”
Robert Sandford said the role of a collegiate chaplain is unique in that the students are usually at a crossroads in their lives, questioning their purpose, values and morals.
A campus minister must have a willingness to challenge students and help them clarify what they really believe, Sandford said.
“You need to love and want to serve students,” he said. “You need to have the ability to ask questions and help them feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and problems.”
With a naturally transient student body, the job stays fresh and the ministry is constantly evolving, Sandford said.
“In campus ministry, you change your ministry by staying put,” he said.
“We have an 80 percent turnover about every two years. In a church, to find new people, you have to move. Here the people move and you stay.”
Serving as interim campus minister until a permanent minister is named is ODU alumna Emilie Morrison, who has worked at the ministry since early spring.
“She should be able to help make a smooth transition for the new chaplain because she knows the program and the students here,” Sandford said.
The Sandfords, who live in Norfolk, plan to move to Richmond to live near their two daughters and grandchildren.