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Noel Willis: Graduating With Honors
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T R U M M , INS n i l 71
How far you go is up to you. If you are 17 to 27 years old,
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A IM H IG H
W
Like thousands o f college seniors
throughout the country, Noel W illis
recently basked in the lim elight o f
convocation cerem onies But unlike
most seniors, the jo u rn alism m ajor at
the University of M issouri graduated
w ith honors—m agna cum laude, to be
precise.
“It w as a very, very, good feel­
ing,” W illis, 22, rem arked o f w alking
across the auditorium stage to receive
his bachelor’s degree “Just having
family m em bers clapping m ade my
day.”
W illis, who is the grandson o f
Jo h n a n d T h e lm a S y lv e s te r o f
Portland was also nam ed a m em ber o f
K appa T au A lpha, an honor society
fo r a s e le c t g r o u p o f s tu d e n ts
from am ong the top ten percent o f the
g rad u atin g class. T h e h o n o r is a
prestigious one indeed, especially
w hen earned at the oldest an d m ost
renow ned jo u rn alism program in the
country.
A num ber o f fam ily an d friends
from across the country shared in the
m om ent, including the g rad u atin g
se n io r’s “ G ra n d m a S yl,” T h elm a
Sylvester. “Y our m ind tells you that
th e re’s no way G randm a Syl should
make such a long trip ,” W illis said.
"B ut in my heart and soul I’m as
pleased as punch she m ade it here.”
Noel W illis spoke w ith love and
adm iration o f his grandparents, w ho
he said represented a crucial bridge
between the past and present. He also
noted that his deceased grandm other
on his fath er’s side o f the fam ily,
Bernice M ayfield, was there in spirit.
"T hey’re all great people, no doubt
about it.”
A num ber o f fam ily m em bers and
In addition to training and a good paycheck, the Air Force
will help you get an education. We ll help you pay for
college while you’re in the Air Force. Also, we have a
two-year degree program and a plan to provide money for
school even after your Air Force tour is over.
friends gathered for a post-graduation
celebration dinner. T he m om ent was
touching for all w ho w ere present, but
the d in n e r’s honoree said that he was
especially overw helm ed.
“ I never experienced that type o f
em otion in all my life th at I felt tow ard
every person in that room ,” he said.
T he honors graduate offered special
praise for his mother, Verlean Sylvester
W illis “She constantly read to m e as a
child, and I ’ll alw ays rem em ber our
trips to the library,” Noel W illis re­
called. “S h e’s the one w ho laid the
foundation.”
She certainly did. A single w ork­
ing m other for the better part o f N oel’s
childhood, V erlean Sylvester W illis
stressed the im portance o f reading A
stack o f library books could often be
found in the back seat o f her car.
“My advice for young m others
w ith no m oney is th at the library is the
best place to take your fam ily,” Ms.
W illis suggests. “T h ere are so many
w orlds to explore. A nd it d o esn ’t cost
anything.
“Besides, if a child can feel free
w ith a book,” she said, “it w ill be m uch
easier for them to learn in school.”
Noel W illis will be the first person
to point out that his father, Leon Willis,
and stepmother, H arriet Palmer-W illis,
w ere there for him , too. W illis recalled
that his father helped to erase w hat­
ever doubts the jo u rn alism student had
concerning his abilities. O ften, Leon
W illis’s letters front hom e served as a
lifeline for his youngest son.
“D ad ’s a m an w ho does not ex­
press his em otions as m uch as he prob­
ably should,” N oel W illis said o f his
father. “Just having him at the g radu­
ation cerem onv m e a n t a I n t t o m e ”
T h e years o f fam ily encourage­
m ent obviously paid dividends. But
V erlean Sylvester W illis is quick to
give ultim ate credit w here it is due.
“W e w ere a support group for Noel.
But he did it.”
Not long after experiencing the
eu p h o ria o f g rad u atin g , how ever,
Noel W illis said that this is a cross­
roads period in his young life. “ I’m
going to have to sit dow n an d take a
hard look at w ho 1 am ,” he said. T he
jo u rn alism graduate said that the pre­
dicam ent o f m any young Blacks has
been o f concern to him also.
“ It ju st proves how screw ed-up
th is society is. I th in k o f those broth­
ers in ja il,” he said. “T hey are people
w ho are as bright as I a m - n o brighter.
T here is an E instein out there.”
T h e honors graduate argued that
through our labor an d bloodshed in
battle, am ong other contributions,
B lacks are “m ore A m erican” than
practically any oth er group o f people
in this country. Yet, despite that, he
noted that we continue to live in “a
system that d o esn ’t recognize w hat
an individuals prom ise is.”
“I th an k God th at I was able to
get th ro u g h the cracks,” he said.
D enise LaCour, w ho m ade the trip
along w ith her d au g h ter C rystal, lias
dubbed her nephew “T h e M agna
M an” in recognition o f his accom ­
plishm ents. T he specific honors do
n o t m e an as m u c h fo r V e rle a n
Sylvester W illis, how ever, as she
w atches “the last child leaving the
nest,” she said philosophically. “It’s
the icing on the cake,” she said. “ But,
you know , I ’ve alw ays scraped icing
o ff cake w hen I eat it, anyway. But
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