2008

jECCC Cor•·n;;ed From Page 1A ThUrsday and the tce cream mach ne exploding on me in the cafetena. And who could forget Sp ng Spree, mid-day naps ar.d crammmg for tests at dmght! Ml will look back on pic– tures and forever remember the wonderful people that I have met at East Central, and ) how helpful and caring the faculty is. These are the things that I find make an ordinary academic institution excep- tional, and in this, EC is up there with the best." Gaines also reminded graduates ''to be flexible to the demands of whatever situa– tion we face, as we now are leaving what has become our comfort zone." She further commented, ·with each new challenge, fear will be inevitable, but it is the way in wh1ch these fears are conquered that makes a person grow. We, as gradu– ates, are facing a new ven– ture. Yes, we are going to have troubles along the way, but honestly, where would we all be without them? We must face all thrown at us with con– fidence, grounded in the wis– dom gained through past trials. We have the ability to do amazing thmgs, yet we chain ourselves with fear of failure:· She quoted Romans 5:3-6 as a guide for optimism in times of difficulty: ".. but let us also rejo1ce in our suffenngs, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope ...You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly." Gaines added, "We can reach our goals, and trials only make us stronger while conversely f.9rcing us to real– ize that we do need the help of others:· She also stressed the im– portance of ''the beautiful de– tails in life, rather than the hardships," a lesson she learned this spring as a mem- 1Jer of the Lady Warrior tennis team. "Coach (Dianne) McNeill never became angry over the loss of a match;' Gaines ...t ... tn~ "C::ho u1ru ol~ <>ornnht tt>ll

nr 'fl •• us what we dia well and what needed to be improved upon. What angered her most was– (having) an unsportsmanlike attitude. Should not our lives be lived in a sim, lar manner? Regardless of the ftnal SC'Jfe it truly is the small detatls and the attitude we uphold that are going to matter in the end." During her closing re· marks, Gaines shared c statement by Abraham Lin coin, whicfl included the fol· lowing message: ".... 1 am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live up to the light I have....Let us have the faith that makes might, and in that faith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we under– stand it..." "We too should have a similar mindset," Gaines re– marked. "Like the song per– formed earlier states, hfe is made valuable by 'how you live.' Ten years from now. your former teachers and employ– ers may no longer remember your GPA, nor will they nee· essanly remember what you wore to work or class. It is much more likely that they re· member your attitude toward your studies, your peers, and life in general." She concluded her re– marks by issuing the following challenge to the Class of 2008: ''Strive to be the best teacher. tJ"Ie best coacr •. tne best mechanic, the best nurse or best student that you can possibly be. I challenge you to embrace the best of times, to not tear the best of competi– tors and to be the best that you can." In addition to Gaines, other graduating sophomores who participated in program were Jonathan Jackson of Hickory, invocation; Drew Gillis of Decatur, benediction; and vocalists Dru Anderson of Decatur and Ryan Reeves of Forest, who presented the musical selection, "How You Live, Turn Up the Music." Dr. Lavinia Sparkman, vice

tri e to Be the Best.. " , ECCC .. Speaker Tells Fello,,· Graduates

education or enter the \'•0' ·• 'orce. The Philade phia res oent admttted what she w re– member most about· ECCC ooes not involve the quao- ratiC equation nor does it have anything to do with sub· jecVverb agreements." She provided a few examples: "I will remember the way Ms. (Sharon) LeJeune gen– umely cared for each one of her students, calling ~s all by name and teaching us practi– ca Knowledge as well as bio– log ca. sciences. will remember 'Chicken Contmued On Page 18

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Julie Gaines of Philadelphia addresses fellow graduates at ECCC's commencement held Saturday morning at the Neshoba County Coliseum In Philadelphia. (EC Photo)

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president for instruction, pre– sented the approximately 470 candidates for graduation who received diplomas from ECCC President Dr. Phil A.

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