Grad: Time to do great things

Graduates of McCook Community College, class of 2003, were honored by a full house of MCC faculty and staff, family and friends Friday during the college's 75th graduation ceremony.

Jill Hidy of Trenton, a member of the graduating class, presented the commencement address. Hidy was chosen from a group of students who competed for the honor. She is the first student to be given the honor of delivering the address.

"We all have the desire to better ourselves and our place in the world," Hidy told her classmates. "No matter what your age, you still have your whole life ahead of you."

"This is the time to do great things with your life."

Hidy told the group the story of Julius Caesar who, at the age of 38, glanced a statue of Alexander the Great and began to weep. When his comrades asked him the reason for his tears, he told them of all the things Alexander had accomplished by the time he reached 38.

Over the next 24 years, Caesar became one of the greatest leaders in the world, Hidy told the graduates.

Just like Caesar, Hidy said, "If you look around you and wish you could make something more of your life, you can -- no matter how late or what obstacles you face."

Dr. Carlton Williams, interim president of Mid Plains Community College Area described the 2003-03 academic year as a year of successes.

"This has been a year of college leadership," he said.

"We've called on people to put together their hearts and hands. This they've done," he said. "We need to keep the vehicle of this college on the road."

Williams highlighted the colleges successful financial situation, campus development and the development of a distance learning and advanced study classes.

Williams also praised the college on the compromise it reached in naming the institution, giving local resident Lloyd Benjamin much of the credit for resolving the issue.

"Grant us the privilege of calling this bricks and mortar here between L and M Street by its name -- McCook Community College," Benjamin asked during a meeting with MPCCA Board of Governors.

The college will continue to review and renew its commitment to being a college family, Williams told the graduates.

"The future success of this college and your own success will depend on how you treat others," he said.

"You should never miss the opportunity to experience the beauty and the wonder of this life which is ours," he concluded.

Reginald Halsey, a student at MCC preformed "Win -- I'm Gonna' Win," a song by Brian McKnight.

Graduates were presented their degrees and diplomas by Dr. Williams. Dr. Richard Tubbs, vice president of MCC for MPCCA presented the candidates.