Warning: this will be a long and sentimental post... About 27 years ago I began my college career as an immature and not so ready freshman at Virginia Tech. I majored in beer drinking and having a good time and in the process made some good friends (Jay Honse, Kelly Ayers Sheehan, and Mikael Manuokian among others) but unfortunately they expect you to go to class and get good grades so I was asked to leave. Skipping forward to 2005, I had taken many different classes at almost every higher learning institution in the area (CNU, TNCC, TCC, The Apprentice School) but never knew what I really wanted to do until I saw an ad in the Daily Press for the UVA BIS Program. Having loved the college since I was a boy and having watched numerous friends graduate from there and after watching or listening to Jason K. Wallace and Paul London play football on TV or radio on many Saturday afternoons, I knew the University of Virginia is where I wanted to be. I got into the program in 2007 and made some great friends in the cohort that started that Fall including Michelle Miller, Charlene Lendes, Ellynne Woodson, Sandra Smith, Joanna Loring, Senicia Marshall, and Terry Swindell. After my first year in the program I found myself in turmoil as I lost my marriage, my house, and my job in about 8 months. I took three years off and by the time I re-entered the program all of my first class had already finished the program so I was essentially thrown into a new cohort of classmates who I became good friends with including Joyce Knowles Hartman, Annalee Miller, Cassandra Buzzell, Amy Jankowski, Cindy Lawson VanderMeer, Ginnie Parker, Angela Sadsad, Steven Samotis, and Barbara Zurewich Raab. There were many others in the program who I didnt get to know very well or who I only know through Facebook and the BIS program but who I still consider friends including fellow 14 BIS Graduates Haven Casaday, Marie Katrine Fleming, Tabatha Ford, Melissa Conrad Johnson, Lauren Kelly, Marie Poole, and Jerry Reid, as well as future Graduates Helen Everett Frankos, Nancy VanCamp, Nickie Hatcher Wilson, and Tamara Wilson. Now that I finally have my degree I must acknowledge those in my life who have inspired me during this (long) journey. My parents, Lonnie Elrod Sr. and Linda Elrod, gave me the foundation for my academic success through constant encouragement even in the face of my past failure. My son, Kyle Elrod, has provided me much joy in my life and I hope Ive shown him that dreams do come true through hard work and persistence. Finally my wife, Shannon Young Elrod, is most responsible for picking me up and giving me the confidence I sometimes lacked in the pursuit of this dream. The quote below is from the dedication section of my Capstone Thesis which she has never read and sums up everything I want to say now: My sweet Shannon, my sunshine, my love, my wife, it is you who has been my rock, who I’ve relied on the most, and who I owe everything. From the ashes of my former life, you’ve helped me rise up like a Phoenix, ready to take on the world and whatever comes my way. With you at my side, I am capable of soaring higher and farther than I ever could have on my own or ever thought possible. I only hope I live long enough to love you forever. Wahoowa!!
Posted on: Tue, 20 May 2014 01:03:26 +0000
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