As conversation partners, Alisha and Samantha bonded over food. In this sacred season, Candler celebrates the gift of a unique aspect of student life known as R Words Conversations. Sponsored by the Office of Student Programming (OSP), R Words pairs two students of different backgrounds - race, gender, socioeconomic class, etc. - who spend the school year building a relationship based on trust that leads to wider discussions about difference. "You have someone you can share with and ask questions about race and culture that you typically can't ask without getting crazy amounts of push back," says Candler alumna Alisha Gordon 15T, who helped launch R Words in 2013. Alisha and her R Words partner, Samantha Cowan 14T, recently connected in a Google Hangout from Atlanta to Boston, recalling their memories of R Words and how their ongoing friendship has impacted life and ministry after Candler. Watch their conversation in the video above.

Current second-year MDiv students Larry Gipson and Khalfani Lawson also got together to recount their experience as R Words partners. Check out their thoughts below.