Illinois softball redshirt-junior Veronica Ruelius was selected as one of only 1,300 University of Illinois students to attend President Barack Obama's speech at Foellinger Auditorium on Friday, September 7. Here are her thoughts on the experience...
When people think of student-athletes they think they do not have much time to do anything but their sport and school, while that may be what it seems, there are so many opportunities at the University of Illinois. Last Friday, September 7, I had the opportunity to be one of the 1,300 people to go see our former President Barack Obama speak in Foellinger Auditorium. There were over 22,600 students who put their name in a ticket lottery portal from all three schools in the University of Illinois system, including students from Chicago, Springfield, and Champaign-Urbana.
I am truly honored to have witnessed such a timeless event. When President Obama walked on stage, I found myself overwhelmed with joy for that moment. There was an undeniable joy in the room as people clapped and cheered for what felt like forever. At this event former President Obama spoke out about our generation and the need for our vote. He spoke about the realness of our world right now and the opportunities that come ahead. No matter your political stance on things that are happening in The White House right now, there is a large need for votes coming from our generation. This opportunity was amazing and I was so thankful when my name got called - it felt like a dream. This is going to be a moment that I tell my grandchildren about.
There are so many different opportunities that you can take part in at this University and so many different organizations you can get involved in on campus. When I stepped on campus I was not just involved in softball, but I also started off in the I-Leap scholars' program as well. Throughout my four years here I have volunteered for several non-profit organizations, including Central Illinois Food Bank, MLK Day of Service, Habitat for Humanity and many more. I have also had the pleasure of being a freshman athlete mentor. I have been able to serve on the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). There are also many university student organizations that you can get involved with on campus. I was involved with the Kinesiology Student Organization for a brief time. You can find out about all the organizations on Quad Day every year. These different organizations keep you involved in the campus life, as does different events like Barack Obama coming to campus.
Going to see President Obama is one of those things that you never really think will happen, but you can always hope for it. The people in that room were all equally as excited as I was. I made a couple of friends from that speech because everyone there was in the same head space. There was a lot of welcoming people in that room who were all there for the same reason. The people sitting around me were kind and really cared about what we were all there to do. I have never seen that type of comradery before in a political get-together. It was very refreshing to be around people who cared for other people and cared about each other's futures. These are the types of things that make me genuinely excited for our future as a generation and as a woman.
As a woman taking on college away from home, I knew I needed to pay attention and be stronger than ever. Barack Obama said it best, "we need more female bosses." We need more females that are willing to take risks and fight for what we believe in. Walking on campus as a freshman I had nothing but fear - fear that I would not do well in classes, fear that I could never walk anywhere by myself and fear that something might happen to me away from home. Now as a senior I walk everywhere by myself, I am taking every class one day at a time with purpose, and I have no fear left in me. College teaches you more than you will ever realize and getting involved taught me that there is room in this world for strong women and if you follow society's way of what a woman should be, you are setting yourself up for failure. College brews strong women through networking.
This is the point of college. Not to daydream in class all day, not to go out on the weekends, not to get caught up in your sport, but to network and get involved in your community, all while making the grades you need. College teaches you much more than what you might realize. It teaches you about the future and about yourself. You find out where your political stance is, who your best friends are, and you find out how to live on your own. College is not all books all the time it gives you an idea of who you are going to be in 10 years. What kind of networking ability do you have? What do you want out of your college experience? You cannot just be book smart to move beyond college and get a career... you need to have these networking abilities and going to different events on campus can help you achieve these things.
Veronica Ruelius
