The H and K Chronicles: Ode to Berea

Holly: So Kelly and I have been wanting to blog about Berea College for a while now. But today, I was absolutely insistent upon it because I am a senior!!!!

First off, a few tidbits about Berea: Founded in 1855 by an abolitionist Methodist minister. Has a student body of just over 1700 (that is not a lie), 18% acceptance rate, student/teacher ratio of about 11:1. Located about 40 minutes south of Lexington, couple hours away from Cincinnati, Ohio. For Kelly and I, it's about a 4 hour drive, so not terrible. The main kicker: Berea charges no tuition (also not a lie). Makes up for this by having a ginormous endowment. That's a very basic rundown. Now...

Up until the end of my sophomore year of high school, I had never heard of Berea. A dear friend of mine and Kelly's, however, took a visit with some others from our school and absolutely fell in love with it! She applied and was accepted within a few months; we were all so excited!!!! Fall of 2007 our friend went on to Berea and I started senior year of high school. Every time I talked to her, I was always, "tell me about Berea, what's going on at Berea? Tell me about your Berea friends." Kelly and I had our first visit in March of 2007 (spring break of our junior year). As predicted, we absolutely fell in love with it, and I fell in love with it fast! I literally stepped on the grounds, proceeded through the tour, and was like, "This is it. This is where I'm supposed to be."

It took a while for application materials to get organized, but Kelly and I applied sometime in December of '07. The waiting was HORRENDOUS! I tried to get on with my life as best as I could, but I just could not get that little school in Kentucky out of my mind. We did apply to several other schools, but Berea was unanimously our first choice. Finally, in March of 2008 (yes, that's a four month wait), I got the letter that, literally, changed my life: I was accepted!!!!! However, the joy was short lived, and....I'll let Kelly share that with you.

Being at Berea has been such an enormous blessing to me: I have literally had some of the best (and probably some of the worst) times of my life here. It is a miracle that I attend a college where my professor knows me. It's a miracle that I attend a college where my professor knows my name!!! Some of my greatest life influences I can now, without a doubt, include some of my professors I've had here. I don't think they'll ever know the amount of influence they've had on me. Some of the best friends I've EVER had I met here, and I don't think they'll ever know how much of a joy it was to be a part of their lives. Thank God we still keep in touch! :) MANY of my greatest academic challenges have been from classes here, homework assignments, papers, presentations. I have never laughed so hard or cried so much here. If it weren't for Berea, I never would have found a church that I consider more of a home than I could have possibly imagined. I never would have had the opportunity to study abroad in England! And the list goes on and on and on and on...

The fact that I am approaching the end of my time here is exciting, heartbreaking, and terrifying all at the same time. But I don't really want to think about that right now.......I'm still trying to have as much fun as possible! :) Berea is an amazingly awesome place, and I really cannot imagine having gone anywhere else for my education!

Anyway, if you haven't visited Berea, I strongly recommend you do so! If not, then...well, you know enough by now! :)

Kelly: I am not just a number. I am not just another student. I am not in a class with 400 students. I am...me. That is how this institution recognizes me. If I had a nickel for everything that I love about Berea, I could quit nursing school and do whatever I wanted. I remember the day that Holly got accepted....but on that day I also received some news. No, it was not news of my acceptance; it was news that I was put on the waiting list. Did I think I was going to get in? Actually, for a while, I didn't think I would. But Holly and I sat down after she got her acceptance letter. It was a talk that we had never really had to worry about, or one that we never had to have before. Though I don't remember the extent of the conversation, I do remember telling Holly "look, there is a great possibility that I may not get accepted. No matter what happens though, you HAVE to go here. You cannot turn down this opportunity." And she didn't. Then, for me at least, the waiting game continued.

On top of Berea, I had one other school that practically gave me a free ride, Ohio University in Zanesville (OUZ for short). I had heard great things about their nursing program, so I applied and got accepted. The only problem was that on OUZ's campus there isn't any housing, so I'd have to find my own place to live. Also, I didn't have my driver's license at the time, so I would have had to get that, get a car and get a job. I was progressing further into OUZ's application and didn't hear anything for a while, so I just assumed I wouldn't hear anything. On May 6, 2008, I had my deposit for OUZ sealed. I was literally going to drop it in the mailbox that morning saying "yes, I am coming here. Hold a spot for me." But when I walked to the mailbox, I had a letter from Berea in the mail. That was it. It was my acceptance letter. I ran back inside, jumped up and down, ripped up my OUZ deposit and threw it away. The wait was over...and the rest is history.

As a senior now, I do not regret the decision I made to come here instead of OUZ. I have absolutely NO regrets, and I am just marveled at all the opportunities I have had to grow here. Very distinctly, I still remember moving into Elizabeth Rogers residence hall on August 21, 2008, ready to be on my own for the first time. Once all our stuff was unpacked, I remember looking at Holly and saying "well....now what?" Again, the rest is history. I've made some wonderful friends that I will cherish, unfortunately most of them have graduated and are on to bigger and better things. Then there's the friends I have made within my major. There's only 19 of us in my class right now, so we've all been forced together for the remainder of our time here, but I get along with everyone and we have such great times, even while studying. I still remember saying to my mom the first time we visited "Mom, we HAVE to come here!!!!!"

So now, here I sit...and like I have said, the rest is history. Though I have one more year left, I am very looking forward to more new and exciting opportunities to grow not only in my major, but also in my faith in Christ, my relationships with friends, and my personal skills when I begin the baby steps of the professional nursing field. I praise God for a college such as this, and like I've said countless times, I have NO REGRETS. Ok, I'm going to stop rambling about how awesome Berea is...it's the old tour guide in me and the tired me who's been up since 3:30...AM. Enjoy this post, readers! Cheers!!!!