edited by Emily Grooms
CLEVELAND, Ga., (TMNews) –Kristen Loy is a Truett-McConnell College senior and nursing major from Mebane, N.C. In the following interview, Loy shares how God used professors and friends to grow her faith and strengthen her walk with God throughout her time at TMC.
The TMC Life
Q: What has Truett-McConnell meant to you over the time you’ve spent as a student here?
A: Being 6 hours away from my family is hard sometimes, but Truett is a place where I feel at home. If I can’t be at home, Truett is where I want to be. The support from the faculty, the atmosphere on campus, and the friends I have made here make it feel that way.
Q: Is there someone on campus (a teacher, staff member, coach, friend,) who has made a great impact on your life? If so, can you tell me about them?
A: Professor Alvater has made a huge impact on my life as a student, as a nurse, and most importantly, as a Christian. She has taught me that my faith is who I am. She showed me that being a Christian will impact the way I provide care for my patients in the future. She persistently reminds me that nursing is a calling to be the hands and feet of Christ.
Q: Was there ever a time where you wanted to call it quits? If so, what made you stick it out?
A: Oh my word, yes! There was a time around my 2nd semester of my sophomore year at Truett that I wanted to be done. (And if I was being honest, there have been multiple times since then!) Sometimes, the weight of life, school, being on student life staff, and everything else seems to be too much. But what made me stick it out was the fact that I knew that God had me here for a reason, and He wasn’t finished with me yet. That’s the only thing that made me stay.
Q: How have the classes at Truett-McConnell helped to shape your world view?
A: My classes at TMC have helped me shape my worldview by teaching me that my faith is a lifestyle. My classes at Truett have taught me to view the world through the eyes of Christ. When I have a nursing class not only do I learn more about disease processes, but I learn about how I can provide special care to a person with that particular disease because I can love and care for them like Christ loves and cares for them. Each of us is being prepared to take on the world in whatever field God has called us to do. That is a Christian worldview.
Q: Did you ever go on a mission’s trip with TMC? If so, what was special about it?
A: Yes, I have had the opportunity to go on two missions trips with TMC. The first trip I went on was the Resident Assistant’s mission trip to Haiti in January of 2014. The second trip was Truett’s first medical mission trip to Kenya in March of 2014. Both were life-changing in different ways, but they were both special in that they brought forth a love I have for medical missions.
Q: Looking back over your time at TMC, what’s one of the most fun things you ever did (with your friends or on a school sponsored trip)?
A: I loved going to Night of Joy … that was SO FUN! I also love exploring all the places around Truett with my friends.
A Look Back
Q: Which dorm or apartment is your favorite and why?
A: During my time at Truett, I’ve lived in Otwell, Merritt, and New Dorm…and I love them all.
Q: What is the most embarrassing thing that’s happened to you during a TMC class?
A: I have tried to suppress those memories.
Q: What are your ‘hopeful’ plans after graduation?
A: Past my NCLEX exam!! Haha, but really, my dream job would be to work with cancer kids at Duke Hospital, located in N.C….and to take as many medical missions trips as possible.
Q: Is there a favorite meal in the Truett-McConnell Dining Hall (aka, ‘the Caf.’) that you are going to miss?
A: The pasta. I love pasta.
Q: If you could have any career, regardless of degree, money, etc., what would you be and why?
A: I would be a nurse. They get to serve others and that’s such a beautiful way to show Christ’s love.
Q: What are you going to miss most about being a student at TMC?
A: The one thing that I am going to miss most about being a student at TMC is the friends I have made here. It is going to be so different to not be able to see them every day. They have been such an encouragement in my life and my walk with Christ and it’s going to be the worst to have to leave them.
Q: What are you going to miss least?
A: The one thing I am going to miss least about Truett is the constant pressure to be in a Truett relationship…I won’t miss that at all.
Q: What is the best advice you could give a freshman?
A: The best piece of advice that I could give a freshman would be: to be yourself. Don’t try to get a ring by spring, don’t try to be the most popular person on campus, and don’t try to be the person with the most friends…just be yourself. You will be so much happier if you just do you! Oh, and don’t procrastinate!
Q: What is the best advice you would give someone who is considering TMC for college?
A: The most important thing you can do when looking at colleges is to seek out what the Lord wants for your life. For me, I knew that Truett is where God wanted me to be; He has revealed that to me in so many different ways. However, Truett is not for everyone. You should go where the Lord wants you to go. If that is Truett, then that’s great! Being here has done more than you can imagine for my spiritual growth! But if the Lord wants you somewhere else…don’t be afraid to follow that path whole-heartedly.
