Nice to Meet You: Alonzo Medcalf
MBU’s new instructor of communications and multimedia production, Alonzo Medcalf, joined the faculty in the fall 2018 semester. With a bachelor’s in mass communication as well as a master’s degree in church ministries, the former St. Louis KMOV news photojournalist has found a home for both his passions at MBU.
LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION
After working in sports photojournalism throughout college at a local news station in Joplin, Missouri, Medcalf found his calling in the field of media communications. At KMOV, he became known as the lighting guy for using techniques that made his subjects look like movie stars. His experience working in the local news industry has helped to shape the curriculum for his MBU students because he wanted to be able to apply real and current industry standards in his teachings. Medcalf continues to stay active in the news world as a freelancer for KMOV.
ONE WRITE WAY
While many people have a favorite pen, Medcalf would go so far as to say there is only one pen with which he will ever write. He bought a Lamy fountain pen while in seminary about eight years ago and has yet to part with it. According to Medcalf, it is the only pen that makes his handwriting legible.
AND THE EMMY GOES TO…
After being nominated three times, Medcalf won his first Emmy in photo journalism in 2018. Medcalf collaborated with KMOV’s Alexis Zotos on “Homeless Dispatcher,” a story about a man who worked his way through school to become an EMT dispatcher while living in an abandoned house. It was from stories such as this that Medcalf would learn his biggest takeaway after 10 years in the industry: compassion.
HE FOUND ME
Toward the end of Medcalf’s undergraduate days at Missouri Southern State University, he felt compelled to communicate the Gospel in a bigger way and put his journalistic goals on hold. After graduating in December 2010, he gave all of his furniture to his neighbor and trekked to Louisville, Kentucky, to pursue a master’s in theological church ministries from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He later returned to St. Louis to work for KMOV before his passions for media and theology would intersect when he accepted a faculty position at MBU.
TACOS FOR LIFE
It’s not uncommon to find Medcalf trying out one of our city’s many ethnic cuisine offerings around St. Louis. On the weekends, he can likely be found in a Bridgeton neighborhood grabbing tacos de lengua (tongue) and other authentic Mexican food from a stand in the breezeway entrance to El Morelia, a Mexican grocery store.
ENJOYING THE VIEW
Before meeting his wife, Medcalf would not have envisioned himself to be a hiking kind of guy. But now? Medcalf says the duo are hiking fanatics. This year will mark the fourth time the couple will embark on an adventure atop the mountains in Ozark National Forest in Arkansas.
