Daniel Partain came to Hendrix College with the goal of a lucrative career, ready to declare a major in computer science.
However, the goal Partain came to college with was that of his parents, not his own. It wasn't until he became involved with the Hendrix-Lilly Initiative, an on-campus office designed to encourage students to examine their vocation choices, that he found his true calling.
"As Hendrix-Lilly forced me to think about my vocation, it became apparent I was pursuing something that would ultimately make me unhappy," Partain said.
Now a junior majoring in English, Partain is one of hundreds of students who have benefitted from direction through the program and now, thanks to a donation of $1 million from Bob and Nadine Miller of Fort Smith, hundreds more will receive the same assistance.
The Hendrix-Lilly Initiative will soon be renamed the Miller Center for Vocation, Calling and Ethics and will provide programming, staffing and leadership to assist Hendrix students through challenging life decisions in both faith and education. A reception was held on campus Tuesday to honor the Millers and their decision to keep the program going strong.
Dr. Peg Falls-Corbitt, the center's director, said what she and other administrators do every day is encourage students to think of their lives as a calling, no matter where their futures lead them.
She described examples of students who had come through her office, from those who answered the call to ministry to those who discovered new ideas for the future through mission trips, retreats and self-reflection.
Falls-Corbitt said she described the lives of specific students not to take away from the number of lives the program has touched, but because "the truth of the value is something individual and personal, it's the immeasurable worth of a life worth living."
Partain said through the center's program, he has been able to tutor local elementary students, meet families who live in crumbling homes in Peru and become quickly adjusted to Japanese customs.
"Sometimes it seems like the Hendrix-Lilly program is opening up another world, but in fact all they're doing is showing me the real one," Partain said.
Another student, junior Rachel Kincannon, also spoke about how Hendrix-Lilly changed her life. She said in high school she felt a call to the ministry, but was very hesitant on how to answer.
"Hendrix has helped me find those tools needed to be prepared for the ministry and how to use them," Kincannon said. "And now the best example I can give you of what the program does is stand here and tell you I know I am called to ministry and I am committed to that goal."
Kincannon also offered her thanks to the Millers for continuing and enhancing a program that has helped her so much during her college career.
"I cannot thank you enough for not only your generous donation to the students of Hendrix, but for the generous compassion these students will soon be serving," Kincannon said.
The Millers were present at the reception to hear about the past, present and future of the program and the appreciation everyone at Hendrix had to offer. Bob Miller told the crowd Hendrix has always had a place in his and his wife's hearts, but it was not until he saw what the Lilly program could do that he became interested in making a donation.
"When we saw that the Lilly group gave money to bring together faith and education and when you have the type of folks that are here running this school, the decision was a no-brainer," he said.
Miller said in college, there are many temptations that can cross students' paths and a program that brings faith into education is a necessity. He said faith can help a student make right decisions when it comes to not just education, but all aspects of his or her life.
"Regardless of how educated a person is, that is only half a loaf," Miller said. "You have to have the faith that goes with it. Faith, honesty and integrity with an education is what makes the whole person."
According to a Hendrix press release, Bob and Nadine Miller are pillars in the United Methodist Church, serving as lay leaders in both local and national Methodist organizations, and have been responsible for numerous philanthropic actions within their Fort Smith community. They have been active supporters of the First United Methodist Church of Fort Smith for decades as well as advocates of the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith, a new emergency room and center at a local hospital, and other service-related organizations.
Hendrix College has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church for more than a century.
(Staff writer Jessica Bauer can be reached by e-mail at jessica.bauer@thecabin.net or by phone at 505-1236. To comment on this and other stories in the Log Cabin, log on to www.thecabin.net. Send us your news at www.thecabin.net/submit)
