The Mason Spirit

My story actually begins in the 1960s in isolation on a pediatric ward. Weeks of hospitalization gave me the desire to become a nurse. At that time, I envisioned a nurse to be a caring person who gave out ice cream while donning a hat that singularly represented the profession. It was years before I…

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Stephen Russell, BA European Studies ’88 Faith Builders Resource Group, 2008 Various individuals have their own views on violence and despair, and they have their own beliefs on what punishment is considered equal for a violent act of crime. Overcoming Evil God’s Way offers a biblical message that trusts Christians will replace hatred and trepidation…

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Nancy K. Pearson, MFA Poetry ’05 Perugia Press, 2008 A collection of poems, Two Minutes of Light reveals the struggles many people overcome as they confront the complicated obstacles throughout life. Pearson uses vivid imagination and language to create this beautiful, astonishing, and inspirational collection, which won the 2008 Perugia Press Prize. Originally from Chattanooga,…

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Mike Langan, MFA Creative Writing ’95 and JD ’98 Treble Heart Books, 2008 Langan’s second legal mystery novel, Ready for the Defense, is an intense thriller in which a lawyer, Hank Fisher, must determine who killed his boss and endangered his client, Senator Victoria Serling, after a sudden and deliberate incident. As the investigation continues,…

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Bill Hirsch, BA Psychology ’71 Dalsimer Press, 2008 Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons from an Architect guides the reader in the right direction while contemplating the ideal home. The book offers numerous answers to questions about the design process. Hirsch also describes the role of the architect and how he or she will support one’s…

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Sharon Creech, MA English ’79 Joanna Cotler Books, 2008 Hate That Cat is a continuation of one of Creech’s previous novels, Love That Dog. Jack, a character from Hate That Cat, is beginning a new school year with Miss Stretchberry, his teacher from the previous year. Miss Stretchberry introduces new poems that enable her students…

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Today, Mason has several bustling campuses with a large on-campus student population, history, and tradition. Tradition? Yes, we do have tradition at Mason. Our alumni remember Mason Day, International Week, Greek Week, and a host of other annual activities from their time as students that were started by our Mason pioneers and firmly established as…

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2008 was such a crazy year for Rick Vaughn, BSEd Health Education ’79, that he knew it would be December before he could really process it all. Even then it felt as if it had been a dream. After 23 years working in major league baseball (MLB), Vaughn, vice president of communications for the Tampa…

Continue Reading From Last in the League to Field of Dreams

Just as humans reveal a lot about themselves through their behavior, animals do the same. And for animal behaviorists such as Elizabeth Freeman, PhD Environmental Science and Policy ’05, any sneeze, dance, or stomp could be the key to unlocking the mystery behind why animals do what they do. Freeman originally thought her love for…

Continue Reading The Birds and the Bees and the Elephants

From an early age, John Paul (J. P.) Phaup, MBA ’91, was musically inclined. Born in the same town that produced the Beach Boys, he was his school district’s number 1 percussionist for several years running. “I was a little drummer boy,” he says. Fast forward a few decades and Phaup, now managing director, investments…

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