I was reminded of the power and growth of the student body in a hand-written note (yes people still take time to send notes through the mail) sent to me by the McDaniel family of Shickshinny. The writer talked about the Bocce Bash held at the Nelson Field House in October. The McDaniel’s praised all the student volunteers, but singled out junior Nora Yakscoe, a special education major, who despite some medical issues of her own, put in many hours of work in advance of the event to help ensure its success for the hundreds of participants. The McDaniel’s said the work done that day shows the true nature of BU’s student body which is “loving, caring and exemplary.”Well said! It’s a spirit that I have seen on display throughout my short tenure as president of BU with events like the breast cancer walk, the BU Dance Ensemble dance marathon for the Janet Weis Children’s Hospital, the Suitcase Project for foster children in the area which provides them with a nylon duffel bag filled age-appropriate toys and personal items or most recently the BU softball team pooling their own money to buy a plane ticket so a teammate studying in England could get home to see her mom injured in an auto accident to name just a few.
I know this ‘power of the student body’ will only continue to grow and develop over the coming months and years and look forward to seeing how it impacts both the students and our community.
From me, my wife Deanna and our children Christian and Lauren, it is our hope in this time of peace and joy, that you and your family have a wonderful and safe holiday season and a Happy New Year!
Bashar
