Don't forget where you came from.
10/15/2014
Often times I hear the question, "Where are you from?” I feel as though this is common among college students to discuss with their peers and I find myself asking the question fairly often. As we begin to grow away from our commuter college identity into a more traditional university, we see the student population coming from all walks of life. We are seeing more and more people coming from places like Chicago and the region, Indianapolis metro, Bloomington, Ohio, and even more with the expansion of our online program. Did you know that IU East is now an international campus? We have students from not only the United States, but from countries all across the world.This brings me to the point of my title, don't forget where you come from, and don't be afraid to go out and explore the world. I am from a very small town called Lynn, just 15 minutes from the campus. I go back on the weekends and visit with friends and family and the memories of my childhood always come over me. When I go back to my high school (Randolph Southern), I reminisce about days of basketball, track, hanging out with friends, and about how much easier life was back then. No bills, tedious homework, and I didn't have to think about what career I want to pursue. Simple.
In my experiences, I have learned many things. I have learned how easy it is to become consumed in life and forget to cherish the small things. I hear “I can’t wait to leave Richmond” all the time, and when I ask why, it always comes down to “because there’s nothing to do here.” Well how many of you have taken a run, walk, or bike ride along the Cardinal Greenway? Cardinal Greenway is Indiana’s longest recreational trail. A 62-mile paved trail, Cardinal Greenway bridges Richmond to cities like Muncie and Marion.
What about a trip to the historic depot district? Just minutes away from campus, the depot district houses several eateries and shops all open to the public. Grab some ice cream at Ullery’s, some loaded nachos at Joe’s, a specialty drink (or just some hot chocolate) from Roscoe’s, or have dinner at Firehouse BBQ.
I know these may be just a few small things that Richmond and East Central Indiana have to offer, but going into all of these family owned and operated, local businesses makes way for more to come to the area in the future.
Last night was our annual IU East Volleyball Pink Out game! I just want to point out the awesome attendance by the IU East student body! I talked with a few volleyball players after the game that said the entire team was excited to see such a huge, energetic crowd! We also received props from the Shawnee State volleyball coach who said we had a great student section! We may have a volleyball team, a basketball team, a track team, and so many other teams and organizations, but we are all part of something bigger. We are a community. We are a diverse group of over 4,000 students. We are a family.
We are #RedWolfNation.
