Most Entertaining Commencement Address to Date

Over the weekend, we hosted the family of a graduate, and attended North Park's 2010 Baccalaureate and Commencement services. Congratulations to Kiera, Laura, Alli and Katie are especially sent out! These young women have worked very hard to come to this point and we salute their many achievements and accomplishments. Check out their cords!!

Here we have our first graduate, Kiera, with her family (minus Sommar) in front of 4th Presbyterian Church where, for the first time, North Park held its Baccalaureate service.

And here we have Alli (with Anne) who went back after her first degree at NPU to earn her Nursing degree. You go, girl!

Next, the Johnson family sisters with the Youngmans - Laura, the world is awaiting your passion for learning and teaching as you go forth to inspire! Katie, the graduate on the far right, is passionate about people and music and will soon marry into the Rholl family, esentially becoming a part of our family, too.

And now we come to what I found to be the most entertaining Commencement Address ever - and I have heard a lot of them in my tenure as the wife of an academic man. This was presented by Kevin Leman and the NPU website had this synopsis of the event:

An honorary Doctor of Humane Letters was presented to psychologist and popular author Kevin Leman. Leman, most famous for his books on the role of birth order in developing personality, humored the audience with comments about his children and his own academic difficulties at North Park. He was admitted to the school on academic probation and expelled after three semesters. He later turned his life around and credits the school with making a significant spiritual difference in his life. Leman also told the graduates that their family and friends who jammed the gymnasium were “really not here to celebrate your accomplishments as much as they’re here to celebrate your life.”

His speech was called The Turtle on the Fencepost and the point was made that, again, we don't get to places in our lives without the help of others. He certainly was challenged in his academic life, but his sense of humor in prevailing until he got it right had the audience in laughter the whole time.

I'm thankful that Kiera, Alli, Laura and Katie had all the support from family, friends and faculty to get them perched on this latest fencepost. And now as they are done with campus life at NPU, I wish them nothing but the best, no matter what is to come. WE CELEBRATE YOUR LIVES!