A Big Thanks from the Student Body

Few students at Pensacola Christian College could forget the day of the frozen burritos.

We were all sitting in chapel, and President Shoemaker approached the podium to make a couple of announcements.

“Thank you,” he said once he was nearly finished, "to the young lady who wrote me a suggestion asking for frozen burritos in your Grab 'n' Go lunch sacks. Unfortunately, frozen burritos soak through the lunch bag." Empathetic nods rippled across the auditorium before he went on. "To that young lady—if you will come see me after chapel, I’ve bought you a box of frozen burritos.”

There was a moment of silence and then a thunderous applause. Who wasn't sitting there wishing they had thought of frozen burritos?!

One of my own first memories of President Shoemaker was when he stood up on stage and announced the "PCC" app to scan and download on our smart phones. Pretty cool, right?

Next came the doughnuts. Every room on campus had a steaming box of glazed doughnuts delivered right to its doorstep in celebration of Dr. Shoemaker’s inauguration.

Grab 'n' Go lunches and dinners came--burrito-less but still fantastic, bringing new flexibility to our meal schedules.

Well, he wasn't just bringing surprises and exciting news to the podium--Dr. Shoemaker also came with compelling, Christ-centered challenges for us. In fact, just recently, Dr. Shoemaker encouraged students to "trust, wait, and be faithful" through daily struggles as well as decisions beyond college.

Dr. Shoemaker and his wife began taking students to lunch, seeking out opportunities to get to know us on a personal level.

The college became fully accredited in November, and exciting new plans were implemented for renovation of our Campus House and also the Commons, which will be be completed this coming July.

Kiosk machines were installed in residence halls for easy access to printing, and Coke Freestyle machines arrived in our on-campus restaurant The Palms Grille.

How about the half-time games during the Turkey Bowl, when Dr. Shoemaker instituted the "Segway races" across our soccer field.

Christmas bells came ringing! And faculty and staff came...bringing...about 4500 candy canes, when Dr. Shoemaker gave some encouraging thoughts and sent each student off for Christmas break with a holiday treat!

And the list goes on! But the point is not the list, is it? And I think we all know Dr. Shoemaker would not settle for being thanked without mentioning all those involved.

What has really meant the world to the PCC student body has been to see the heartbeat of a unified, God-fearing staff and faculty. It truly is a thrill to be here as the Lord continues to guide Dr. Shoemaker’s vision--as well as all those working alongside him--to carry on and carry out the incredible work the Lord began through our founders, the Hortons.

So to the Shoemakers, the Hortons, the staff, and the faculty: here's a big thanks from our student body! You each have been a great example to us of what Christ does through a life of service and obedience!

Students, feel free to add a personal thanks or one of your favorite memories from the current events going on at PCC!

Anna Grace

Major: Performance Studies

Home town: “This world is not my home, I’m just a-passin’ through...” Also, my dad is in the Air Force.

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