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They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love

By: Noelle Beans

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Emily Miller

Perform well in nursing school. Work in Residence Life (aka run an entire women’s dorm). Maintain relationships. Figure out where the Lord is calling you. These were challenges that Emily Miller, a 2017 Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) graduate, conquered.

But her initial battle came in deciding where to go to college. Her brother attended IWU, and she didn’t want to just follow in his footsteps.

After a campus visit to IWU, the Christ-centered atmosphere and the great nursing program made it clear to her that IWU was where she was supposed to be.

Throughout college, her schedule was packed. Miller’s job in ResLife ultimately blessed her as she got to meet so many people and spend time with all of them.

She was faced with more challenges from the Lord; therefore, she grew deeper with Him through His teaching and the people who poured into her.

Now, Miller is living and working in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at Spectrum Health at the Meijer Heart Center.

She said, “I work on a Cardiothoracic Progressive Care Unit, and I love it!”

Miller was the ARD of Martin Hall. This is Emily with her RD, Sarah.

She explained that the part she loves most about her job is that she gets to care for people in a difficult and sometimes very vulnerable time of their life.

“God has given me opportunities to pray with patients and encourage them with truth,” she said.

Her prayer every day on her way to work is that her patients would see that this is not just a job for her, but a way that she gets to show them the love of Jesus by the way that she cares for them.

She admits that it is a stressful and demanding job and there are some tough days, but she realizes that she can only continue to have patience and compassion for others with the strength that comes from the Lord.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Written by Noelle Beans, a writer for the IWU Alumni Center. Noelle is a sophomore Nursing and Honors Humanities double major at Indiana Wesleyan University in the John Wesley Honors College from Greenville, Illinois.

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Police Officer Liza Mcdaniel

By: Dezaray Barr

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Liza Mcdaniel while working for IWU Campus Police

Liza Mcdaniel graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) in 2017 with a degree in Criminal Justice. Mcdaniel was led to attend IWU because of a call from the Lord. “As cliché as it sounds, Jesus was why I came to IWU,” she shared. “I came from Georgia, so not much else would have me pack up my life and move 700 miles. My RD at my previous college mentioned that she had family who went to IWU, and ever since our conversation, I just felt the Lord leading me to apply. Once I got accepted, I knew it was something I had to do.”

During her time at IWU, she worked for Campus Police and was a RA in Martin Hall. “It was the most challenging and fulfilling college experience I had. Much like any college experience, it also consisted of lots of late night food,” she said.

At IWU, Mcdaniel said she fell completely in love with the Lord all over again. “The first college I went to was a public university, where not everyone had faith. I loved that atmosphere because of the opportunity to evangelize, but IWU was a place where I got to grow myself instead of trying to help others grow,” she explained. “I learned how to make sure God is my priority.”

Now, Mcdaniel is a police officer in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She said that her experience with campus police has greatly affected her current position. “My job with Campus Police is one of the most amazing things that came out of IWU for me. Mario Rangel was more than just our boss. He was a mentor and genuinely cared about our well-being,” she said. “Working alongside incredible officers helped shape me and teach me to be a better officer and ultimately gave me the experience I needed to get into my current career.”

She continued, “I pray for everyone I come into contact with. That is the biggest thing. In law enforcement, we see a lot of awful things. We are forced to be with people in their worst moments, so my faith is something that I have to constantly fall back on to recognize the good in the world.”

Some fun facts about Mcdaniel includes that she is a triplet, but looks nothing like her sisters. Her favorite food is pancakes, and she loves to listen to classical music.

Liza Mcdaniel and her friend, Emily Miller. Mcdaniel shares, “Go to the Yummi Bunni in Fort Wayne at least once. Let it be your cheat day, because it is SO worth it.”

If Mcdaniel could encourage IWU students, this is what she’d say: “Go to chapel. As redundant as it may seem or as annoying it is to wake up early on days that you have no morning classes, just do it. It helps you prioritize. It helps you make sure that even on the days where you don’t feel like praising God, you can still make an effort to open your heart to him and see if he has anything to share with you. Looking back, the biggest thing I wish I had done was stay out that extra minute with friends. Go to that bonfire. Go to that event your resident hall is doing. Do all of these activities and fun things because soon, you won’t have those opportunities. It stinks when you graduate and have to leave all the people you’ve known for the past few years. So don’t take a single second for granted, because that one moment you take for granted will be the one moment you wish you had back.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Written by Dezaray Barr, PR Specialist for the Alumni Office. Dezaray is a senior Strategic Communication, Journalism and Honors Humanities triple major at Indiana Wesleyan University in the John Wesley Honors College. Visit Dez’s website at www.dezaraybarr.weebly.com.