A Full Senate

So last Thursday was the first official meeting of the RU Senate with all the newly elected and appointed members. It is exciting to have a full senate now. I have a feeling that we will do lots of great things this year. This is my first full year being a part of the RU Student Senate. I tried running for Student Senate last fall as a freshman but was not elected or appointed. However last January I was appointed to student senate and then reelected by the student body for another year. We have an awesome advisor for Student Senate, Dr. Matt Quick who is also the Dean of Students.

            For those of you who may not be familiar with the RU Student Senate we do various activities around campus and are also the voice of the students when they have concerns that need to be addressed or ideas for improvement. Some of the events the RU Student Senate is better known for include:

            The Senate BBQ which occurs in conjunction with the free stuff fair (or more formally known as the Student Activities Fair).

Senate Midnight breakfasts on the evening prior to finals starting both semesters. (It actually ends at midnight, don’t think it doesn’t start till midnight). This is a really fun event in which the Senators make breakfast (including omelets) for the student body. It is a really fun way to start off what can be a very stressful week for some people.

Third major event is Senate BINGO! I never thought I would see more people playing bingo in my life. It is just a fun evening of bingo, really awesome prizes (such as an IPAD last year) and free pizza for all who come out. It is a fun evening for all.

            Well that is all I have to say for this one…It is a super busy two weeks (last week and this week) for me…  If you want to keep on the happenings of RU Student Senate make sure to check out http://rustudentsenate.weebly.com/index.html

Hint hint… the next blog entry will be about family weekend (and Yes this year my family made the 500 mile journey to see me J )  Hope you have an awesome week.

Oh yes… this week’s quote is from The Servant Song (sang at mass here on a regular basis) Will you let me be your servant Let me be as Christ to you Pray that I might have the grace To let me be your servant too” 

Come Holy Spirit

Last Tuesday was the Mass of the Holy Spirit here at Rockhurst. The President let all classes out so everyone who wanted to could attend the mass. Mass of the Holy Spirit is celebrated at all the Jesuit Colleges and Universities across the country on the same day; which I think is so cool. The Mass of the Holy Spirit was a tradition started all the way back in 1548! Rockhurst had a great turn out at the mass. Those in attendance included Regents, Trustees, Staff, Professors and Students. Father John Craig who is in his first year here in Campus Ministries gave a great homily.

One part of the mass of the mass I found particularly neat was how the first reading was read in three different languages (English, Spanish, and French) at the same time! I am also a huge fan of church music especially some of the “newer” church music. The Rockhurst Choir was awesome during the mass and the song selection was also perfect for the occasion.

Then following mass it was a perfect day outside and Rockhurst had a free lunch on the quad for all who were in attendance at the mass. You know students will not pass up free food! It was just a great way to start off the year asking the holy spirits blessing on the school year. The Students present at the mass read a blessing for the staff, and faculty present at the mass and then the staff and faculty read a blessing for the students.

This week’s inspirational quote is taken from the program at the Mass of the Holy Spirit:

“We stand called by the one spirit to share the very work of God; to shape our future, to renew the face of our fragile planet, and to heal its many communities. We celebrate our common call and purpose” 

May the God of wisdom, knowledge and grace bless each of us as we begin this year! 

A weekend to remember… in a different way

So as the title implies this weekend was a weekend to remember. On Saturday I participated in the Nelson Hopkins Skip and Run.

The Skip and Run is a 5k to benefit the memorial scholarship fund for Nelson Hopkins who was a high school senior living in the local community when one day in late 2009 he was found dead by police not far from campus. He was walking home from the bus stop after spending time at the downtown library filling out his college application. So at 10 on Saturday morning about 280 Rockhurst Students, faculty and local community members took the streets running to raise money for a scholarship fund set up in his honor and to honor the legacy that Nelson left.

As a note the top person finished in a time of 18 minutes and 30 seconds and in case you were wondering I finished in a time of 21 minutes and 10 seconds. I was happy with my time because it was a hilly course. In high school I was a 4 year cross country and track runner running a 5k is nothing new to me. I also participated last year in the first ever Nelson Hopkins Skip and Run.

            One Sunday September 11^th it was a day to remember for Rockhurst as well as for the nation as we remembered the tenth anniversary of 9/11. So growing up I really enjoyed watching the news and I remember being glued to the TV for about a week after 9/11 happened. So I am not sure about any else but on Sunday I got distracted from my homework watching the 9/11 memorial videos on Youtube. FYI there is some really good ones if anyone is interested.

One of my friends and I had an interesting talk reflecting back on 9/11 saying that we were in 5^th and 4^th grades respectively when 9/11 occurred. We remember what happened and were thinking that we are one of the last years of students that remember 9/11 and were able to at least partly understand it. We made the comment to each other that it is crazy there are kids as old as we were when 9/11 happened that were not even born when it occurred so have no remembrance of it at all.

On Sunday night at the 6pm student mass we honored the 9/11 victims by taking a moment of silence and lighting a candle for each year that has passed since the events 9/11 took place.  It was a simple but appropriate way to remember 9/11. Hope you have a great week!

This week’s quote will take a different perspective… when I saw it I just stopped and thought… “‎‎9/11 in Numbers: 8:46 a.m. and 9:02 a.m. Time the burning towers stood: 56 minutes and 102 minutes. Time they took to fall: 12 seconds. Total number of people killed in attacks: 2,819. Number of firefighters and paramedics killed: 343. Bodies found "intact": 289.Body parts found: 19,858. Number of families who never received remains: 1,717. Number of people who lost a spouse/partner in the attacks: 1,609. Estimated number of children who lost a parent: 3,051. Estimated number of New Yorkers suffering from post-traumatic-stress disorder as a result of 9/11: 422,000. So many numbers. But here's one more: 10 years. Forever in our hearts and never forgotten.” It just makes me realize how fortunate I am. Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kqA0JEJchI

Who am I?

So before I start getting into my blogging I figured I should tell you a little bit about myself. My name is Josh Goralski I am currently a sophomore at Rockhurst University majoring in Nonprofit Leadership Studies and Accounting. I have a work study job in the athletic office and I am also the Desk Manager in Corcoran Hall. (Each of those will probably be separate blog topics for a later date so stay tuned). I came to Rockhurst University from Naperville, Illinois (approximately 30 miles outside of Chicago).  Back in Naperville I have an awesome family of my two sisters Bethany and Hannah and my parents. I have and will always be close to my family. 

People often ask me “why did I pick Rockhurst?” My answer to that question is for a few reasons. One of the reasons I decided to come to Rockhurst University is that they had my major (Nonprofit Leadership Studies) which is not offered as an undergraduate at very many universities across the country. Another is the size of Rockhurst. I went to a high school of approximately 3200 students and had a graduating class of 781. By my senior year I finally felt like I had made a name for myself. That took me 3 years too long. One of the awesome things about Rockhurst is that if you choose to get involved (which is highly highly highly recommended) you will be know by name by the student activities staff and many others on campus by the end of first semester if not sooner. Finally I decided to Rockhurst because I wanted a Catholic school. After going to public school all my life but being majorly involved with my church in Naperville I wanted to have my faith live incorporated into the classroom.  So this concludes blog number one. I hope you come back next week for more.

I really enjoy motivational quotes. So every blog entry I am going to try to end with one so here is the first one. This one happens to be inscribed on the Rockhurst bell tower make sure to look at it for yourself when you visit: ““You are called by the Society of Jesus to be men and women who reflect upon the reality of the world around you with all its ambiguities, opportunities, and challenges, to discern what is really happening in your life and in the lives of others, to find God there and to discover where God is calling you, to employ criteria for significant choices that reflect Godly values rather than narrow, exclusive self-interest, to make decisions in the light of what is truly for the greater glory of God and the service of those in need, and then to act accordingly.”  Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, S.J., 29th Superior General of the Society of Jesus, 1997