By Sonya D. Lavett
“We lift as we climb.” – Mary Church Terrell
Share Your Story for Us
Commencement in Orange Beach is the ultimate culmination of hard work and dreams achieved. Each year, we welcome our graduates and their loved ones to campus. Seeing your faces, shaking your hands and finally meeting face-to-face is such an honor, but listening to your inspiring stories is undoubtedly the best part for us. It’s something that our faculty and staff look forward to every year.
Each year, we see the joy in the eyes of your families as they proudly stand by your side. They know the real story of just how hard you worked, the nights you stayed up late to study and complete your assignments, the days you struggled to keep up with life’s daily demands and still maintain your focus. Keeping your eye on the prize was something that could prove elusive on some days, but you still pushed through.
Share Your Story for Your Peers
When you share your stories, you are speaking to the hearts and minds of those who understand what you’ve gone through and why. You’re speaking to those students who might be struggling to keep moving forward. Your stories provide hope for those that might be overwhelmed or are having to make some really hard choices. Your stories help them to keep pushing, day after day.
Share Your Story for Your Family
When you share your stories, you are speaking to your family. You’re teaching your children that hard work and dedication pays off. They know that earning a degree is not something that simply happens overnight, as you well know. It takes years. It takes energy. It takes motivation. And what a great lesson to teach.
Share Your Story for Yourself
What will you do now? What direction are you headed? Your education is folded into the story of your life. It is your legacy for your children, your children’s children, and so on. What will you do with your new found knowledge? How will you keep this fire burning and pass it on to those next in line?
While commencement week has come and gone with all of its awesomeness, your story continues. You’ve contributed to a community of individuals who have enhanced their skillset, grown wiser and who have gone from student to “teacher.”
Your dedication to education has made this world a little better, and your story has only just begun. Congratulations to you and all that you have accomplished!
Comment below to share your #MyCSUStory or visit the #MyCSUStory testimonial form.
