Posted December 7, 2016 by
Tags: My Wheaton Campus Financial Aid
Break Ends, But Thanks-Giving Continues
Lower Beamer Student Center bustles with excitement as the end of a class period is signaled by the presence of countless students in colorful sweaters. An eagerness for Christmas hangs in the air: two days back from Thanksgiving Break, students are returning to a decorated campus. Lower Beamer is no different: snowflakes dangle from the ceiling, trees sparkle, and garlands drape over banisters. The Giving Tuesday booth sits amidst all this festive cheeriness manned by dancing, hollering, and laughing Students Ambassadors and Student Alumni Board.
“Lower Beamer is just so jolly today!” exclaims a student I run into on my way to the booth.
Giving Tuesday is each student’s opportunity to reflect on what Wheaton has meant to them and focus on the joys our wonderful campus offers us every single day. When passers-by are asked if they'd like to add to the wall of thankfulness, there is not a single person who does not eagerly stop, choose a colorful sticky note and corresponding sharpie, and write out something that makes them smile.
The number of people writing out the specific name of a friend (or multiple friends!) is quite the testimonial: thankfulness for campus community is reiterated over and over again through notes spelling out “My professors”, “My family and friends”, or “My roommates”. The wall of thankfulness has grown to three times the size we originally planned it to be; if you give students an opportunity to express their gratitude to Wheaton and all it has done for them, don’t expect their thankfulness to be carefully contained within a limited space!
It is amazing to witness the many students and faculty members who are thrilled to participate in Giving Tuesday by also giving back to Wheaton financial gift or using social media to post about Giving Tuesday. I confess that prior to Giving Tuesday, I was ambivalent about the percentage of students who would participate in contributing financially to Wheaton. “We’re paying plenty in tuition,” I expected them to say. Proving me incredibly wrong, beaming student after beaming student committed a financial amount toward The Wheaton Fund.
What a privilege it is to witness the generosity and gratitude of my fellow students and the faculty I so look up to. Giving Tuesday reminds us of all that Wheaton has given to us on both an individual and a communal level. We are thankful for the professors who pour into us intellectually and spiritually; we are thankful for the athletics and clubs that enable us to use our abilities for God’s glory. We are thankful for faithful communities, for a beautiful campus, for the excitement that comes with campus-wide Christmas decorations. Let us celebrate the countless opportunities Wheaton has given us, not just on Giving Tuesday, but every day of the year.
Sophie Clarke ’19 is an English writing and communication (media studies) major. She is also completing a journalism certificate. Photo caption: Students are thankful for donors and for the first snow of the semester!
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