Raucous laughter bounced jovially off the walls of Gordon College’s Bennett Center.
“We’ve actually been doing a lot of board games!” was the next sentence from the mouth of Christian Kim, ‘22, co-president of the La Vida Rock Gym. He was sitting with his two roommates, Hudson Finn ‘22 and Connor Ruhland ‘22, all three of whom serve as Senior Staff in the Rock Gym and two of whom (Finn and Kim) are the Climbing Club presidents.
Their laughter was in response to being asked, “What is your favorite thing to do as roommates?” Wily glances at each other preceded bursting into laughter and a confession about the ongoing competition playing the board game “Risk,” which is a nightly routine in their room in Nyland Hall.
What they didn’t know as freshmen walking into the Rock Gym was how it would shape their Gordon experience. “Connor and I actually met at the belay class here,” Kim remarked. Both a part of the Fulton Hall Events Council and volunteers at the gym in their freshman year, Ruhland and Kim were always coming in to climb, and Finn also came in nearly every night. Ryan Locke, ‘22, Finn’s freshman year roommate, has also since joined the fold as a volunteer. Finn hadn’t climbed before coming to Gordon, but Finn shared that now “it’s just turned into a thing that I do all the time, it’s routine.”
“When I was a freshman,” Ruhland reflected, “it was great being able to come in, learn more about climbing, and get better just by working with people who were already better than me, who could push me to be better.” Ruhland had prior experience climbing before coming to Gordon, but it is the community that shaped his experience. Similarly, Kim reflected, “when I first came into the Rock Gym, it was the community that drew me to it. I made a bunch of close friends.”
What is unique about this bond of friendship (beyond the pterodactyl calls that are apparently heard behind their door by passing Resident Advisors) is that their room is not the only place where Kim, Finn, and Ruhland choose risk. As third-year rock gym staffers, they are familiar with taking risks that La Vida likes to call “commitment moves.”
In interviews with the three “rocketeers”, it was evident that their community within the Rock Gym is what allows the space for commitment moves. Kim reflected, “the biggest thing for me was it was such a no-judgment zone. People come in, they play games, they do homework, they just talk. Yes it’s a job, yes it’s somewhere where we can exercise, but more importantly, it’s a place to hang out, relax, get some of the stress away from classes.”
For Ruhland and Finn, they see that this community is the place that allows for growth. As Senior Staff, Ruland shared that he gets to help “people who have never climbed before get more into climbing and better themselves as climbers so that they can teach other people and grow close together.” Finn agreed, saying “Seeing people improve in their climbing abilities is a big plus.”
But joining the team as Senior Staff their sophomore years was another layer of commitment move that wasn’t expected.
“I’ve always been more of a reserved person who isn’t rushed into things,” Ruhland expressed. It became a commitment move for him to “be that person who advocates for why people should come [climb in the gym].” Ruhland noted, “I think the rock gym has helped me become more outgoing and adventurous.”
Finn shared a similar sentiment, saying ‘commitment move’ has impacted him “especially as Senior Staff, because I’m naturally more reserved and not outgoing.” The three roommates, having seen the impact of the Rock Gym on their friendship, continually take commitment moves in order to welcome people into their community.
Now, as juniors and experienced Rock Gym specialists, these three get to invite others into the space where they have experienced growth. “That’s why I’m still doing it, so I can keep that community and help bring other people into the fold,” Kim shared. For Kim, seeing people grow from making commitment moves is a core part of the gym. “What we do here impacts people, and people remember it when they’re older, years later. We’re a part of that. It’s the small lessons like, ‘don’t give up, you can do it.’ That’s something that will stick with you for the rest of your life. And it’s really cool to be a part of that.”
Article by Electa Sutton ’21, La Vida Communications Intern