ANNUAL FUND
INVEST IN SEATTLE PACIFIC
My name is Melyssa Norris, and I am a senior music education and vocal performance
double major at Seattle Pacific University. From the moment I set foot on this campus, I
knew SPU was the place for me. I came because of my two passions: music and
teaching in a strong Christian community. I’m a member of the chapel worship team, sing
in the choirs, and play in the Thalia Symphony. I cannot begin to describe the support and
encouragement I have received from the faculty in the Music Department. They truly
believe in me!
I felt academically prepared to attend Seattle Pacific after succeeding in Advanced Placement classes in high school and participating in Running Start. My SAT scores and grades were strong. I also had the full emotional and spiritual support of my family and church community. They nurtured me and encouraged achievement.
But I also knew what a challenge it would be financially. My family is not in a position to help with college costs. Despite earning several academic scholarships, I still had to take out student loans and work two jobs during the school year to make ends meet. Both were nanny jobs –– one early in the morning before classes, and one right after my classes ended. I found time for homework in the wee hours of the morning.
My first quarters at SPU were very tight financially, but the Lord showed me that he provides “immeasurably more than all I ask or imagine, according to his power.” As registration approached for each new quarter, the resources came together.
That is, until the fall of 2007.
God had other plans for that quarter, and they did not include attending classes at SPU. I was devastated. I just could not earn enough or borrow enough to continue. He used that time in my life to teach me about trusting him even more. He has been ever-faithful and so good to me. Throughout my journey, I have witnessed the grace of God through Christians’ hands as my professors continue to believe in me and motivate me to continue to pursue my dreams.
That taste of having to drop out due to finances turned into a fierce determination to finish. I worked non-stop that fall and re-entered Seattle Pacific in Winter Quarter 2008. Winter and Spring quarters found me in eight, and then nine classes. I packed them in so that I could move myself that much closer to my goal to graduate in four years.
That summer was a work marathon, but it was not enough. Door after door shut as I tried to line up the financing required to register for autumn classes. Once again I looked at the prospect of sitting out another quarter, perhaps never to return.
And then, by the grace of God, something amazing happened. My mother’s cousin, who is a bishop in the Baptist church, gave me a call. He said that even though he did not know me, he cherished my grandmother and wanted to offer financial help to me in her name. No strings attached.
Can you imagine what it felt like to receive that call?
I know I am not the only student here at SPU in a very tight financial position. There are many wonderful students who need help right now. And the numbers are growing. As a teacher, I do not expect to be earning a large salary when I graduate this spring. But like the widow who put her two coins in the temple treasury, I plan to support students who have the same needs I’ve had. God provided for me, and I intend to be his tool to support others. Everything I have is his anyway.
Would you be willing to support one of these students with a generous gift to the University Fund? Just think what a difference your sacrificial gift can make in the life of another student, just like me. In a very real way, you can help engage the culture and change the world.
Thank you for your support!
Melyssa Norris
Class of 2009
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Click here to read Stacy's story
Click here to read Olivia's story
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