Student Business Donates to One Bistro
The business, which is part of the Integrated Business Core, sold clothing items with the unique logo “XCIX --> I,” representing the Roman numeral version of the number 99. It is based on the parable of the wandering sheep from Luke 15.
On April 26 at 3 p.m., the Cedarville University student business Pursuit, an outgrowth of the university’s Integrated Business Core (IBC), will donate $500 in proceeds from their shirts, hats, and pins to One Bistro Café, 87 E. Main St., Xenia.
Pursuit sold clothing items with the unique logo “XCIX --> I,” representing the Roman numeral version of the number 99. It is based on the parable of the wandering sheep from Matthew 18 and Luke 15, in which a shepherd leaves the herd of 99 to run after the one who is lost.
One Bistro Café is a restaurant that focuses on “paying it forward” — customers can choose the amount they pay to ensure that those who cannot afford a meal can still eat. Those who are not able to pay have the option of working at One Bistro to help pay for a meal.
“By creating a logo that causes people to ask questions, we can fully explain the parable and its meaning,” noted Parker Johnson, a junior accounting major from Kailua, Hawaii, and the team leader of Pursuit. “The goal of Pursuit this year is simply to initiate gospel conversations, and we wanted to create a brand that would cause people to ask those questions.”
Beyond the financial support for One Bistro, IBC students volunteered at One Bistro for 10 hours each, with a total of 340 hours spent helping the Xenia-based business and ministry.
In addition to One Bistro, IBC businesses contributed $260 to Operation Heal Our Patriots through Samaritan's Purse and $260 to the International Missions Board. Beyond Pursuit, IBC included Encompass and Consider the Ravens.
The IBC is a three-hour elective practicum (BUS-3280) taken in the fall of junior year, in conjunction with finance (FIN-3710) and management (MGMT-3500) courses. Students taking IBC have successfully completed MRKT-3600 during the spring of their sophomore year.
As part of the practicum, students establish a fully functioning business with a business plan, financing, and marketing. The primary goal of IBC is to help students break out of the silo that defines their business discipline and see how their field interacts with others in a business laboratory.
All IBC teams are completely nonprofit. Every member of Pursuit has also volunteered at One Bistro.
“This is the kind of impact we seek from each of our IBC businesses,” said Andrew Wonders, assistant professor of sport business management, and an IBC coach. “We want our students to learn the principles of business while also making a positive difference in the community. Pursuit and its contribution to One Bistro Café embody those ideals.”
Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 4,715 undergraduate, graduate, and online students in more than 150 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is one of the largest private universities in Ohio, recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, including the Bachelor of Science in Accounting, the Bachelor of Arts in Marketing, and Bachelor of Science in Finance degrees, strong graduation, and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings, and high student engagement ranking. For more information about the University, visit cedarville.edu.