Profiles - The McKendree Review

11Apr

By The McKendree Review7 Comments

Entirely Improbable – Gilson Nyrimana

By Zach Breeding, Editor The sheer impossibility of finding another person in the same situation as Gilson Nyrimana is a better opener than any that I could ever think of. The statistic I searched so long for is athletes who have zero experience in a sport walking onto their college’s team and being able to compete. Up until late in the second semester of his freshman year, Nyrimana had never swam extensively. It was then that he registered with the NCAA and began training doubles with the McKendree swim team, a top 15 team in the nation. Nyrimana is from a Kigali, Rwanda, a small country that many only know exists because of the genocide which occurred there. Even more interesting to note is that the country does not have a national swim team except for the one person they sen...

23Mar

By The McKendree Review5 Comments

Campus News, Personality, Profiles, Sports

One Leg, No Limits

By Alexis Porter, Contributing Writer I was walking back from the cafeteria at the Colorado Springs Olympic Training Center in the summer of 2017, carrying a to-go box of leftovers to enjoy later, when I first met Jacob Waters. He sped past me on his bike like a NASCAR driver and popped the longest wheelie I have ever witnessed in my life. My mouth dropped open in disbelief. I was instantly impressed and intrigued. “Hey, wait!” I called out after him. He circled back around and pulled up next to me. I glanced over his face quickly and then took a long look at his bike. It was bright green, rugged, with large treaded tires. I figured it had to be special if this kid could ride it on one wheel for so long. “Sorry didn’t mean to fly past you like that,” he said hopping off his bike...

19Mar

By The McKendree Review2 Comments

Campus News, Personality, Profiles

Wanderlust

By Magdalena Knapp, Editor “I got run over by a baby elephant, and wow, even a baby elephant is huge and powerful! […] But it was fun!” Whether she gets run over by a baby elephant in Thailand, detained at the Israelian border, invited by an American Jew in Jerusalem to join Shabbat dinner in a tiny room full of people, or snuck out from a Jewish hostel in Jerusalem to join a three-people Palestinian tour of Bethlehem and discuss political tensions – Professor Capron has done it all. Portugal, Spain, France, Switzerland, India, Israel, Mexico, Peru, Machu Picchu, Puerto Rico, Canada, Vancouver, Thailand, Jordan and more – the list is endless. There is hardly any place in the world that she has not stepped on and somewhat explored yet. Aurélie Capron is who I would consider a real Marco Po...

Dr. Mario Livio – The man that gives curiosity a face

2Mar

By The McKendree Review2 Comments

Campus Events, Campus News, Local News, News, Opinion, Profiles

Dr. Mario Livio – The man that gives curiosity a face

By Magdalena Knapp, Editor “Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband's death.” (Kate Chopin - "Story of an Hour") - You can hardly introduce a short story with a better sentence than this, in my opinion. This sentence makes you curious, wants you to continue reading and to discover more about Mrs. Mallard, the death of her husband and how she is going to live with it. Curiosity - this has been Dr. Mario Livio’s field of interest for the last five years. Dr. Livio shook my hand with the heartwarming words “La vita è dura” (Italian for “Life is hard”) and introduced himself to me before his big speech. “I’m not actually Italian,” he says, “but people think it because of my name, so I mi...

26Feb

By The McKendree Review3 Comments

Campus News, Entertainment, Personality, Profiles, Sports

For the Love of the Game

By Kaylee Fann “What distinguishes a great player is his presence. When he goes on to the court, his presence dominates the atmosphere” – Bill Russell Charismatic. Outgoing. Loving. Talented. Inspiring. Resilient. These are all words that can be used to describe 19 year old Winslow Martin, a basketball player for Southeastern Illinois College in Harrisburg, Illinois. Born and raised by a single mother in Centralia, Illinois, Martin fell in love with the game of basketball from a young age. His older brother and grandfather served as positive role models for a young Martin, teaching him everything he knows about the game. Once he started playing, he practiced with his brother nearly every day. His grandfather was actually a professional player overseas until an injury abruptly ended h...

20Feb

By The McKendree Review1 Comment

Personality, Profiles

A man has to BE something

From Editor, Zach Breeding Today marks the 13th anniversary of Hunter S. Thompson tragically taking his own life. There is, however, no sense wallowing in pity for a man who felt he lived 17 years too long, anyway. So, on this most auspicious of occasions I would like to present one of my favorite authors' take on a young man's life and what is truly important within it. Without further adieu, here is a letter from Thompson, then 17, to his friend who asked him for some advice: Dear Hume, You ask advice: ah, what a very human and very dangerous thing to do! For to give advice to a man who asks what to do with his life implies something very close to egomania. To presume to point a man to the right and ultimate goal—to point with a trembling finger in the RIGHT direction is somet...

Rob Watkins – Being More Than Just a Student

15Dec

By The McKendree ReviewNo Comments

Personality, Profiles

Rob Watkins – Being More Than Just a Student

By Shelby Procko, Contributing Writer McKendree Senior Robert Watkins is both the president and founder of the McKendree chapter of Sigma Alpha Phi, also known as The National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS). He is a business administration major with a minor in leadership studies. When asked what he planned to do with his degree after graduation in December he shrugged and said, "I have no idea, I am still trying to figure that out." Grinning, he added, "If you figure it out, let me know." Rob is active in numerous other roles on campus including student government president, peer mentor, a job working in the IT department, and an intern for the Student Success Center doing data organization. He used to play for the McKendree Men’s Volleyball team but decided to sit his last ye...

Almost a Quarter of a Century of Commitment – Our President Dr. James Dennis

8Dec

By The McKendree Review2 Comments

Personality, Profiles

Almost a Quarter of a Century of Commitment – Our President Dr. James Dennis

By Magdalena Knapp, Editor Many McKendree students only know Dr. Dennis as the person who stands in front of the Bearcat Statue and hands out a cool cone of ice cream on a hot spring or autumn day. However, our President is much more intimately involved in the everyday life of his students and the minute-by-minute running of the university than most could ever imagine. Working at McKendree University for him is not simply a job, it is his Lebenswerk: A mission he has successfully been working to fulfill since 1994. After growing up in Los Angeles, California, and getting a degree in Education, JD - a nickname Dr. Dennis received in college - worked for seven years at the University of Southern California. In 1994, he was offered a job in the beautiful and historical city of Lebanon, Ill...

When at McKendree….| A Student Experience in Pictures

4Dec

By The McKendree ReviewNo Comments

Opinion, Profiles

When at McKendree….| A Student Experience in Pictures

By Essence White, Contributive Writer When at McKendree, I go on my daily hike to the West Clubhouse from my apartment. Then I wait for the Bogey Bus which decides to take its sweet time to get here. One bus, out of the two that run every day, is supposed to arrive every 10 to 15 minutes. The real way they operate is when one bus shows up, the other bus shows up right behind it. When at McKendree, I go to 1828 for a quick bite to eat. It’s only a 30-minute wait for five chicken wings and some fries. So. Convenient. When at McKendree, I rush to get to class on time. Five minutes before the class I am rushing to get to, I get an email that class is canceled and the bus leaves right at that moment. This means I have to wait for the bus in the ...

27Nov

By The McKendree Review1 Comment

Profiles, Sports

A Series of Fortunate Events

By Andrew Gardewine, Contributing Writer Michael Mendez, head coach and former member of the McKendree Cross Country and Track and Field programs, is quite possibly the most hard working person on campus. If he is not coaching a practice he is in a meeting, if he is not in a meeting, he is in his office working late at night and in some cases into the early morning. On top of it all, he still manages to find room to maintain his physical shape with bike rides and runs as well as manage his own running club, The Lebanon Project. He has a full plate and a bright future as a coach, however this article is not about his future, rather it is about his past. Coach Mendez has overcome countless obstacles in his life, obstacles that he considers “a series of fortunate events,” but what he would ca...