Pay It Forward

When I arrived in the summer of 1988 to begin work as the Catholic Campus Minister at Lynchburg College, John Eccles was one of the first people I met. John and AJ invited my husband, our two young sons, and I over to their home for a shared meal. It was the first of many such occasions and a hallmark of Eccles hospitality. Over the 30 years that John and AJ Eccles have been associated with Lynchburg College, hundreds if not thousands of members of the LC family have been warmly welcomed into their beautiful home to enjoy delicious home cooked food, great conversation, and an opportunity to see firsthand what community looks like – up close and personal.

As most of us know by now, John and AJ will be retiring in June of 2016. Many of us are still a bit stunned, shocked, and saddened to imagine this campus without seeing them on a daily basis. And yet we are also so very grateful to have had them involved in our lives for so long, and we feel it would be a bit selfish to deny them the opportunity to enjoy this next season of their marriage. John and AJ are project people: creative and skilled in crafting beauty inside their home as well out outside in gardens and landscapes. They have cultivated deep and abiding friendships near and far and will now have more opportunities to enjoy these relationships. And above all else, they will have more time and energy to savor special moments with their three married children, each of their spouses, and their three precious granddaughters.

In the months between now and June we will have many opportunities to thank John and AJ for all they have given to our campus. And in that same time frame we will have opportunities to prepare ourselves for the transition to new leadership. One of the greatest gifts we can offer to John and AJ is to “pay it forward” by offering to others what we have received so generously from them. Many of us have appreciated their humor, even in times of stress. Let us learn to take ourselves lightly in the days ahead, especially when the impending loss feels heavy and overwhelming. Others have come to appreciate the particular care and individualized attention that both John and AJ have offered to students who come to them for guidance and instruction. May we commit ourselves to being intentional in our own relationships with those in need, listening well and carefully to their stories, and responding with kindness and with compassion. And as John and AJ have shared their sense of family, literally and figuratively with our entire campus, may we prepare our hearts and minds to be warm, welcoming, and embracing of whoever is chosen to take their places among us.

May the gratitude for all that we have received far outweigh the grief for what we will be losing. May we honor their legacy by living out the very best of what they have taught us in word and in deed.

In the words of Dag Hammarskjöld: “For all that has been, Thank you. For all that is to come, Yes!”

Peace, Anne