The People Make the Place

I am at a loss for words.

This may come as a shock to anyone who knows me because I rarely know when to shut up. You know that really annoying kid in your English class who insisted on leading the discussion? Yeah, that was me.

And yet I sit here at a table just outside of Frankie’s at a loss for words.

How do I sum up the four years I spent here?

When Dr. Farabaugh asked me to write about my experiences at Saint Francis, I jumped at the chance.

I’ve been involved with the theatre program here; I’ve won writing contests here; I’ve fallen in love here and I’ve had my heart broken here. I’ve experienced the highest highs and the lowest lows of my life at the College Among the Pines.

There are so many things I could write about. But right now, I’m at a loss for words. Well, that’s not technically true. Two words come to mind: thank you.

Thank you to everyone on this campus, to everyone who read the Troubadour and everyone who wrote for it. Thank you for putting up with my ramblings both on and off the page, and for encouraging me when necessary and reminding me to stay grounded (also very necessary).

But a blanket “thank you” isn’t enough, not for the people who truly impacted me and made me who I am today. So out of gratitude, I am going to give some space to recognize them: thank you to Dr. Pat Farabaugh, for gifting me with the incredible responsibility of editing the campus newspaper, even if I was not always great about meeting deadlines.

Thank you to: Dr. Brennan Thomas, one of the finest creative writers I’ve ever met who pushed me in and out of the classroom; Dr. Robin Cadwallader, Dr. John Woznak, Dr. Timothy Bintrim, Dr. Lisa Beiswenger and Ms. Sydney Lucas. They all deserve a special place in English Professor Heaven for putting up with me walking into their offices, often uninvited, over the course of four years, and for constantly reaffirming through their teaching that, yes, I made the right choice to be an English major.

Part of me wants to neglect mentioning Dr. Lance Mekeel to get back at him for the April Fool’s Day joke he played on me, but I can’t. I spent countless hours working with him in four theatrical productions, two classes and an independent study. I credit my abilities as a director and as a theatre maker to him, for better or worse.

There are also some friends I need to thank: Jack Soyster, Miranda Weiland, Emily Glatt, Kylee Noble, Olivia Theisen, Anna Parrish, Anna Phelan, Angela Wharton, Erin Pyle. Pretty much every English major I’ve encountered over the past four years, as well as anyone who has participated in theatre during my time here. Above all, friends and faculty, I thank Jack Weidner.

One of my other friends, Randall Frye, always says that the “people make the place.” That’s true with Saint Francis. I suppose that’s why when writing this wrap-up, I could only focus on the people, They are the ones that made my time here into memories that I’ll keep within my heart as I move through life.

They are the ones who have made me who I am.