Senioritis is a very real thing, and it needs to be. If everything was as pretty and perfect as it was freshman year, we’d never want to leave. And some people don’t. But people and things change, and in order for us to be pushed on to the next thing, we have to have a reason to move on. Sometimes we have to be satisfied enough to leave, which is a thing that many seniors have to come to terms with.
Shane Felis is one of these people. Christian Studies major, third-year RA and well known on campus for his eclectic personality, Felis has a heart for ministry and his campus. “What God is calling me to this year is to get to know the people he’s placed in my life even more, even if I might not ever see them again,” Felis said. “Friendships are beautiful, even if they don’t last very long.”
Felis worked at Hume Lake this summer, a place that changed his life in many ways. “Every week I had a different group of campers, and I only had them for one week. I knew my time was limited with them, so I had to make the most of it,” Felis said. “It’s something I’m bringing into this year because it’s really easy to mentally check out during senior year. But there’s nothing better you can do than investing in people, so that’s what I’m trying to do.”
Felis’ heart for mentorship and discipleship influences all that he does, including his decision to pick up Jaxx his senior year. “I initially wanted to try out because it seemed really fun, and the community seemed great,” Felis said. “But I didn’t expect to actually get on the team, because I’m a senior.” Felis sees Jaxx as a form of discipleship and a way to get out of the “Union bubble.”
“It’s a sport where you work together and learn and grow from each other. It takes your mind off of yourself and off of the ‘Union narrative.’ We should be focused on the relationships we have, and pouring into those. We’re a community, and so we pour into each other. That’s a beautiful thing.”
He now plays alongside Daniel Lancaster, a third-year Jaxx member and now president of the team. Not only is Lancaster thriving in both Jaxx and Greek Life, but he also became a first-year Welcome Week and New Student Orientation leader this year.
“I was really unsure about it at first because I was afraid I didn’t have the personality for it,” Lancaster said. “I tend to be much more on the reserved side, and so I was afraid of not ‘fitting the mold.’ But that’s when I realized there is no mold because anybody can do it. People want you to be yourself because they want a genuine person, and that’s what people are looking for especially as they enter college.”
Lancaster was prompted to join when Student Discipleship and Engagement Director Joe Ball encouraged him to apply. “Joe saw the potential in me, and encouraged me to pursue it, even if I didn’t think I could,” Lancaster said. “If I could tell myself anything freshman year, it’d be ‘just do something,’ even if it seems hard. If you never do something beyond what you’re capable of, you’re never gonna grow, and you’ll never see what could be.”
This is something that Maisyn Price can also attest to, as this year she became a student ambassador for the admissions department. She’s been a member of Zeta Tau Alpha and debate for all four years, immediately searching for community since she knew nobody here. She also struggled with lots of health issues during her freshman year, which harmed her search for a while.
“I was having to go home every weekend and get transfusions for my anemia, and it was really hard,” Price said. “It made it really hard to be present, but the people I did have at Union made me feel so loved and welcomed. A lot of them were my Welcome Week leaders and my student ambassadors before I came.”
Even though Price has held leadership positions in all her endeavors at Union, she only worked up the courage to apply as a student ambassador this year. “I really didn’t have the confidence until this year,” Price said. “It was always something I wanted to do, especially since admissions played such a huge role in my life. It seemed so intimidating, but now that I’m here it’s great. Everyone is so loving and encouraging and it’s already one of my favorite things I’ve done here.”
As she reflected on her time at Union, she shared her desire to continue her all-star run. “When I’m done here, I’m done, so I’m trying to accomplish everything I can before I go. Union has given so much to me, and I just want to give back. But there’s really not enough you can even do so you just do what you can.”
Felis, Lancaster and Price all have had very different experiences at Union, but all have a similar heart. They’ve all wanted to get involved and serve in their respective areas and all have put in the work and effort needed to get there. They’ve made Union a place they’ll miss and a place they won’t want to leave. It can be so easy to breeze through Union, unmotivated, uncaring, and uninvolved. But Union is a place that deserves to be missed, so let it be. Whatever you do at Union, whether freshman or senior, do it well and give yourself a reason to miss it when you’re gone.
“I love it here, and I’m really gonna miss it. It just won’t ever be the same. I won’t have these people, this place, or this encouragement anywhere else, and it won’t be like this in the real world,” Price said. “So I’m just trying to make the most of everything I do while I still can. I love Union. Go Dawgs!!”
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