One of my dear friends helped us get permission to publish the following letter. Angela Stevens owns Juniper Studios and posted this on her Facebook page on June 28th. I think the power of belief is sometimes underrated.
Abraham Lincoln said, “I’m a success today because I had a friend who believed in me and I didn’t have the heart to let him down.’Here is the story of what believing in someone can bring out.”
Here is a wonderful result of believing in someone.
This man played a huge role in the launch of my photography career. Dr. Richard Wylie, known by many as €œDoc€ was the President of Endicott College for over 3 decades. He passed away last month. I am incredibly grateful for the lasting impact he had on me both personally and professionally.
I took this photo in 2009 during my senior year of college.
In 2008 I wrote Doc a letter and hand-delivered it to his secretary. I had been planning to study abroad in the Czech Republic, but my father was diagnosed with brain cancer during my sophomore year of college and I made the difficult decision to forego studying abroad. Then in 2009 an opportunity to attend a photographic workshop in Greece presented itself, but I simply didn’t have the finances to afford to go.
So, I wrote to Doc. I knew there would be too much red tape to try and go through financial aid in the short time frame I had before needing to submit my application. I took what I knew was a bold chance. The same day that I delivered the letter, I received a personal call on my cell phone. It was Doc asking if I could meet him in his office the following day.
I showed up, nervous. He sat me down in a big chair across from his desk and asked me to persuade him why he should help. I honestly don’t remember what exactly came out of my mouth. Something about being a hard worker, having a good GPA, and trying to balance education and family responsibilities. I was trying to read his face but I had no clue what he was thinking.
He reached into his desk. He pulled out a checkbook and wrote me a personal check for $1,500. From his own bank account. Then he told me he’d hire me to take photos at Endicott of events around campus for promotional use, to earn the other $1,500 that I needed to be able to go. He said he honored and respected my loyalty to my father.
A few weeks later I was on a plane to Crete, Greece. I participated in a 3-week intensive photo workshop where I honed my documentary skills. I am a better photographer because of it.
Thank you, Doc, for taking a chance on me. You helped a 20-year old student chase her dreams. The 31-year old me is still so incredibly grateful.
Finding stories like this is one of the great joys of owning Positive News For You. Thank you, Angela.
[contact-form to=”lee@johndrows.net” subject=”Gratitude To A Man Who Believed In The Student”][contact-field label=”Name” type=”name” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Email” type=”email” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Website” type=”url”][contact-field label=”Message” type=”textarea”][/contact-form]
