Azusa Pacific University is a special place for many reasons—I’ve interviewed many people over the past two years, and they frequently mention the friendly atmosphere. The environment itself, all the blooming flowers, luscious trees, unexpected cacti, and voluminous bushes, are visual representations of the intentionality, beauty, and care that goes into everything APU is about.
I had the privilege of walking around East Campus with Randy Berk, former manager of landscape services, who recently retired after serving APU for 45 years. More than 630 rose varieties, 130 tree species, and several anecdotes later, we had not only strolled through spaces full of legacy and meaning for the university, but we also got to witness the stewardship that APU’s Facilities Management embodies. Their care for the earth reflects God’s call to uphold the beauty in His creation.
Berk and I began our walk near the trolley stop, where impatiens, flowers with delicate purple petals, are planted in memory of Berk’s late wife and former APU professor, Kathleen. Their vibrant color catches the eye and serves as a mesmerizing testament to her legacy.
East Campus is full of many shrub and tree varieties with vivid flowers blooming everywhere you look this time of year. The Indian hawthorn produces pink bunches of small flowers dappled throughout the bush. Near the statue of former APU president Cornelius P. Haggard, foxgloves grow tall, their cone-like structure bouncing in the wind next to French lavender. A few feet away, on the east side of Marshburn Library, the whimsical brugmansia (also known as angel’s trumpets) grow, yellow flowers whose petals curve upward like a brass wind instrument.
The plants surrounding the khachkar, a cross stone memorial in honor of those who lost their lives in the Armenian Genocide, pay homage to the region’s native plant life. Peach and pomegranate trees commemorate the country.
Stepping into the Rose Garden is like transporting to different moments in time. The space holds many memories for Berk. “When I started working at APU in 1979 the Rose Garden had just started becoming what it is now,” he said. He recalled how his in-laws, in the 50s and 60s, lived in the dorms that used to exist there. Spearheaded by former professor Jim Holsclaw, the roses growing along the arbors were sponsored by faculty members. “Roses are kind of like we are. They grow up, live their lives, and then they pass on,” Berk said. The diverse range of roses also allude to humanity, as there are carpet roses, David Austins, grandifloras, floribundas, and hybrid teas, to name a few, all together creating a garden as majestic as one from a storybook. The mermaid rose is one of the most rare species, and grows among the varieties in the Rose Garden.
Just around the corner, on the south side facing Munson Chapel, are weeping bottlebrush trees, which are like a drooping curtain of leaves creating a little hideout. “You could bring a chair and sit inside here if you wanted,” Berk joked.
The front side of the university, with the APU logo shining, is decorated with rich bougainvillea, the bright pink petals like a gorgeous waterfall. Lantanas and cleveland sage grow beneath it, near milkweed, which attracts monarch butterflies.
Orange poppies, black eyed Susans, lavender irises, purple heliotropium, red blanket flowers, and texas bluebonnets, are some of the prettiest flowers cultivating around different sectors of campus, a rainbow of growth.
Tucked away in the corner of Wynn Amphitheater is a collection of cacti and succulents. A desert full of life, the cacti’s quirky growth and fuzzy spikes are a contrast to the blossoms around campus, but they’re beautiful nonetheless. Another gem in the amphitheater is the turtle and koi pond. Berk and I also watched a robin serendipitously fly by the oak and redwood trees surrounding it.
Stepping out of Wynn, back near Marshburn Library and the lawns around the Multimedia Buildings, a number of seasonally flowering trees frame a sublime image of APU’s fairytale springtime. Jacarandas, magnolias, redbuds, crape myrtles, and tabebuias adorn campus with a sea of delight.
Berk’s passion for his career as a landscaper is as vibrant as the super bloom. As we walked around East Campus, former colleagues greeting and joking with Berk, the beauty of APU became even more prevalent to me. The flowers are as gorgeous as they are because of the people who tend to them. The faculty, staff, and students all exhibit that same care toward one another, living out their calling to be stewards of good work.