It was the NCAA Division III National Championship men’s basketball game in Salem, Va. Calvin’s shooting guard, Brian Foltice, developed a hip pointer early in the second half and tried to keep playing, but couldn’t.
With 11 minutes left in the intense battle against the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Coach Kevin Vande Streek pulled sophomore guard Jon Potvin ‘02 over to him and said, “Jon, you’re going in, and I’m not taking you out for the rest of the game.”
Potvin had to take good care of the basketball against a desperate defense and distribute the ball to Calvin’s scorers. He did, and Calvin won its second championship title. (See sidebar video.)
It’s an experience Potvin will never forget, and the lessons learned and the job well done have transferred into his business career and life outside of work.
“As a player, I always wanted to be out on the court, not on the bench,” Potvin said. “In business, I don’t want to be behind a desk. I love to be out working with people, developing relationships, building up a team. I want to know the needs of my clients and to make sure there’s a mutual benefit of doing business together.”
Potvin has done just that, and the MBA@Calvin young alumni business organization named him the recipient of the 2014 Horizon Award, given annually to a young Calvin grad business professional who demonstrates significant contributions to their field and the effect of faith on their work.
He’s been in sales since leaving Calvin, starting at Cornerstone Home Loans—a job coming out of his student internship—and then First Horizon Home Loans, excelling quickly in the mortgage business.
After six years, he moved to a position in sales and marketing at Allied Mechanical but was soon asked by the company to get an affiliated business, Midwest Energy Group, on solid footing. Potvin worked on a four-year business plan to make that happen.
Now he serves as vice president of business development for Allied, assisting that already successful business prepare for the future with technology-based marketing strategies and recruiting new talent to the family business to provide the next generation of fresh leadership.
Once again, he’s leading and building a team.
Outside of the business world, Jon and wife Cricket Huizinga ’03 have three young children—Owen, Lucy and Quinn—and have been active leaders in their church programs.
In addition, the Potvins have established an endowed scholarship for Calvin students from Catholic backgrounds (such as Jon’s), with a preference for the business-interested. He’s also a ready partner with Calvin for student internships and position openings at his company.
“I’ve met all of the kids who have received the scholarship,” he said, “and I am amazed at the quality of students who come to Calvin. Cricket and I always talk about how impressed we are on our way home from the scholarship dinner.”
The advice Potvin gives to current Calvin students is this: “Don’t be afraid to take a risk on a career move, even if you’re not totally sure of the situation. You have to try things, work hard and do the best you can. Then you’ll see what direction God is leading.
“Don’t give up too early,” he added. “Get to know the people at the company that excel. They liked being asked about their success and you learn the work that much faster. Create your own opportunities.”
Potvin is very glad God led him to Calvin College.
“As an 18-year-old, coming from the U.P. [Upper Peninsula of Michigan] and not knowing anyone here, it was the people at Calvin who sold me on the place. I wanted to be around people of character, and I’ve never forgotten that first impression. It was—and is—true.”
