Commencement Sunday, May 1, at 草莓社区 marked the end of a 14-year journey for Bonnie W. Bowser – or perhaps more accurately, a major milepost along her career path.

Bowser, the circulation and office manager at EMU’s Hartzler Library, walked the platform and received a bachelor of science degree in liberal arts with minors in and . Not only that, but she graduated with honors, magna cum laude.

The clincher: she took her first course in 1991 and chipped away one class per semester to obtain her diploma this spring. She was also able to transfer some academic credits from another school.

“Bonnie stuck right with it, sheer perseverance,” said long-time EMU registrar David A. Detrow. “Hers is one of the longest, continuous transcripts I’ve ever worked with.”

“We moved here for my husband Henry to finish his undergraduate program,” Bowser said. “I started taking classes because the opportunity was there, not initially planning to go all the way to a degree.”

Along the way, she decided to scale the academic summit “because it was there.”

The highlight of her long pilgrimage – “without a doubt, the cross-cultural study program to Hawaii in 2003 led by Joyce C. Hedrick,” she said.

“My studies have been invaluable to my work in the library, helping students find the resources they need for their courses and projects,” Bowser said.

Bowser joined several other members of the class of 2005 who might deserve the “high achiever” label, or at least extra credit for determination.

Rachel E. Medley, Harrisonburg; Jason D. Garber, Hutchinson, Kan., and Davi R. Soesilo, Malang, Indonesia, all completed three majors, and are graduating with academic honors to boot.

Medley earned bachelor of arts degrees in , environmental science and international agriculture; Garber completed BA degrees in business administration and economics and a bachelor of science in computer information systems; and Soesilo received BA degrees in and and a BS degree in . Soesilo also was one of 10 seniors to be awarded the “Cords of Distinction” honor for his contributions to the campus and broader community.

“Students graduating with a double major is fairly common,” said Dawn E. Kreider, assistant to the EMU provost, “but completing three majors is rather unusual, a major accomplishment.”

Garber, a computer “whiz kid” who by age 15 was president of his own company, Next Step Systems, handled two lines of computer hardware, installed and configured networks and did web design. He came to EMU wanting to broaden his world view and gain more experience in business. EMU professor Chris D. Gingrich encouraged him to “go the economics route,” which he did.

Later, Garber felt the need for more accounting and management courses, so he added business administration to his portfolio, then a computer information systems major, noting that “all three complimented each other.”

He has accepted a position as a web designer with Fairfield Language Technologies in Harrisonburg.

Soesilo started his college career in law school in Australia, but, in his words, “wanted to find a place where I could explore more options,” which eventually brought him to EMU.

His acting role the fall of 2002 in the play, “12 Angry Jurors,” got him hooked on theater, where he went on to use his gifts in sound, set design and other technical aspects of stage work. “Theater at EMU is like a family,” Soesilo said.

“Davi has given of himself endless across this campus,” said Patrick R. K. Reynolds, assistant professor of theater at EMU. “He volunteered for Teatro Chirmol, a Latino youth theater troupe, assisted with chapel and mentored younger students. His work ethnic is legendary, and he has set a sterling, enduring example of the dedication and breath of skills demanded of the best of artists. Wherever Davi went, he built community through his cheer, wit and caring,” Reynolds added.

After graduation, Soesilo plans to spend at least a year “exploring different areas,” but hopes to wind up with a career in theater or film.

Medley started her EMU academic journey as an environmental science and biology major. A cross-cultural study program in Costa Rica her sophomore year prompted her to add a third major in international agriculture.

“It was a lot of hard work, but I got through,” she said.

Medley will work this summer with the botany staff in the Shenandoah National Park system. After that, she has applied for an agricultural internship with a Florida-based missions organization.

An audience of more than 3,600 got caught up in the celebrative spirit, with sustained applause and cheers punctuating the two-hour ceremony.

EMU President Loren E. Swartzendruber presented diplomas to the 380 members of the EMU class of 2005 that included 317 undergraduates; 60 persons awarded master’s degrees in Conflict Transformation, counseling, education and business administration; and three graduate certificate recipients.

Commencement speaker John L. McCullough, president and CEO of Church World Service, the oldest and largest ecumenical humanitarian organization in the world, used the familiar Robert Frost poem, “The Road Not Taken,” as a springboard for his address on choosing life’s direction.

“The road taken is a statement about values and traditions,” McCullough said. “It defines priorities and brings into focus those things about which one may feel a sense of urgency.

“When you step off this campus, you will immediately set foot on a path reflective of your commitment to mold a quality of humanity consistent with what you fundamentally believe to be both noble and just,” he told the graduating class. “But doing so requires that one must also be clear about that which is ignoble and fundamentally unfair,” he added.

Citing statistics on the unprecedented disparity in the world today between rich and poor, the 80 countries and regions of the world that are presently at war and the staggering demands on agencies and programs that seek to meet overwhelming human need, McCullough challenged the graduates to “find your public voice and . . . choose a path where your gifts are used to improve the quality of our common humanity.

“If you choose the road of solidarity among the poor, then be more than just a presence – be an outspoken and courageous witness for the dignity and rights of the poor,” he said. “If you choose to walk among those of wealth, then use your privilege to be a lightening road for justice and real social change.”

“Two roads that set out from any common point, if traveled far enough into the horizon, must eventually intersect once again,” the speaker said. “This convergence must be about the reconciliation of those who hunger with those whose tables overflow with abundance; it must be about the meeting of those in poverty with those having more than enough to share.

“This is the transformation that is required, and we look to this early graduating class of the early 21st century to help us reach the mark,” McCullough concluded.

Joseph W. Mast, professor of computer science at EMU, offered a prayer of blessing to close the commencement. Dr. Mast plans to retire this year after 37 years of teaching.

During the baccalaureate service Saturday night, senior class officers presented a check for $5,000 to Susan M. Godshall, EMU board chair. The gift will be used to purchase lighting for the sidewalk along Northlawn residence hall, reconstruct barbecue pits and build picnic tables for the hill overlooking campus. Class members gave $2,500, which was matched by a gift from a local donor.

The undergraduate class included three students – Jason D. Garber, Hutchinson, Kan.; Rachel E. Medley, Harrisonburg; and Davi R. Soesilo, Indonesia – who received degrees in three majors, an unusual achievement. All three earned academic honors.