by Bethel University
Bethel University celebrated 584 students who earned a degree during the spring and summer semesters. On Saturday, August 1, over 200 of those students walked the stage at the commencement ceremony held at Wildcat Stadium. Bethel President Dr. Walter Butler delivered the commencement address.
Spring commencement was originally scheduled in May but was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Butler spoke on perseverance. "You have persevered," Butler said. "You are here as graduates in a different way than we have never seen in our nation's history. You have persevered through COVID-19, classes quickly being changed to online and racial injustice."
"May each step you take and the breath you take to be used for the glory of God," Butler said to encourage the graduates. "You all have learned to adjust, change at a moment's notice and to persevere."
Although their senior year was cut short because of the coronavirus, several graduates reflected on what their time at Bethel meant to them.
"My time at Bethel was an adventure, said Mitchell Lunn who graduated with a bachelor's degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. "Bethel has given me friends that I'll have with me for the rest of my life. It's home to me. Bethel taught me a lot of life lessons that I'll take with me anywhere I go. I learned a lot from professors, friends, and mentors on campus. I grew as a person during my time at Bethel that has prepared me for life after college."