Alvernia Students

Alvernia's 3,000 students can choose from more than 50 majors, take part in study abroad programs, intercollegiate or intramural sports, honor societies, student government, arts, faith-based clubs, service programs, and more than 50 student groups. Catch Alvernia on Instagram:

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Learn more about the unique connection between Alvernia Occupational Therapy students and the IM ABLE foundation on Fox News.

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Nursing major Samantha Schenck of Yardville, N.J., spent the summer of 2016 studying abroad in New Zealand, at the University of Otago. During the trip, she offered study abroad advice and reflections in a personal blog.

Samantha’s Advice: “GO ABROAD! Just do it and go! Enjoy every second! I cannot stress enough how much you will love the experience. If you are on the fence and debating whether or not to study abroad because of money, homesickness, or scared of not liking it, just go. You will have no regrets and love every second about being abroad.”

> Visit Samantha Schenck’s New Zealand blog

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Alvernia’s SGA Snow Patrol volunteers shoveled out 10 of houses neighboring the university during winter storm Stella. Community members sign up to receive sidewalk and driveway help from Alvernia students though the Good Neighbors Committee.

#Stella Snow Patrol volunteers included: Jenna Harper, Nicole Harman, Madison Kleintop, Christopher Thomas, Nick Jaisingh, Dave Dominik, Rachel Greising, Autumn-Raine Martinez, Ellesha Gathagan, Kim Whelan, Dorita Deveney, Bailey Stover, Alison Maddox, Lauren Calleung, Maria Gerace, and Kaitlin Didinger.

In addition, several members of the Snow Patrol: Jenna Harper, Nick Jaisingh, Dave Dominik, Kaitlin Didinger, Kerry Johnson and Kim Whelan were also on hand Feb. 9 to shovel out neighbors during the new year’s first snow storm.

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Alvernia student Brianna Roberts, was chosen to pose a town hall question to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on CNN.

> Read article in the Reading Eagle

> See CNN video

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Students in Sue Guay's "News and Feature Writing" communication course had work published in Berks County Living Magazine last December. 

> Check out the December 2016 issue here.

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More than 300 Alvernia University students, faculty and staff took a day off and turned it into a day on at 28 different community partners for the 2017 MLK Day of Service! 

> Read more in the Reading Eagle

> See more on Channel 69 News

Thanks to all who participated and the wonderful organizations in our community who hosted groups! #gotserviceau

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Alvernia Students take on Democratic National Convention

Four Alvernia Univesity students and one faculty member are are participating in the Democratic National Convention July 25-28, through The Washington Center. The experience is part of a two-week program that pairs college students with key organizations before and during the convention. Students work behind the scenes, hear from major guest lecturers, complete relevant coursework and fieldwork assignments.

Two Alvernia students: Allison Antonini (Master’s in Liberal Studies) and Carolyn Stabile (Occupational Therapy) are working with CNN during the convention. Marisa Schutz (Political Science) is paired with Fox News, and Marisa Gittelman (Psychology) is working with CBS.

Communication faculty member, Dr. Jodi Radosh, is also playing a role at the convention though The Washington Center.

The Washington Center is an independent, nonprofit organization that provides selected students challenging opportunities to work and learn in Washington, D.C., for academic credit. The largest program of its kind, The Washington Center has more than 50,000 alumni who have become leaders in numerous professions and nations around the world.

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AU Student Selected for Entrepreneur Program

Alvernia Communication major Shannon Homa has been named one of only 19 students selected to take part in the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council’s Student Entrepreneur Program — taking place in Orlando, Florida, June 19-24.

The program aims to foster growth for the next generation of women-owned businesses through tailored entrepreneur curriculum, a live pitch competition awarding $10,000 in seed capital, and mentoring from the most successful Women's Business Enterprises and America's largest Fortune 500 companies. The students will participate in experiential learning through off-site visits to WBE and corporate campuses and accelerators.

The selection process for the entrepreneur program included a written essay, a resume, a letter of recommendation and an interview. 

According to WBENC, women-owned businesses are growing at one and a half times the U.S. national average, and in turn contribute over $1.5 trillion dollars to the U.S. economy, employing nearly 7.9 million people. In 2015 an average of 887 new women-owned businesses opened each day.

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You Don’t Have to Be Perfect

As college students, we are constantly working under pressure. We are expected to do a thousand things at once and never break a sweat. Many students struggle to get through college. They see everyone doing a great job and succeeding and they start to wonder why they aren’t doing as well as everyone else. It gets to the point where people begin failing classes, skipping classes, and dropping out because they feel like they aren’t good enough. That’s a big problem.

College isn’t about being perfect. Far too many college students believe that they have to be perfect to do well in college. That’s not true. You want to make mistakes. You want to fail. The “real world” is full of failure and mistakes. The first job you apply to may not be the one you get. You may go through 30 applications until you finally land the right job. Even when you land the right job, you’re going to mess up. Messing up doesn’t mean you’re a bad worker. It makes you human.  Messing up and failing are moments where you can grow and learn something new. They’re not obstacles, but opportunities. They’re opportunities to improve yourself, the way you’re doing something, etc. 

College is the perfect time to fail and make mistakes because you’re still learning. You’re finding yourself and figuring yourself out. Failing only accelerates the process. Instead of looking at yourself as a bad person for messing up your part of the project, try and figure out what went wrong. When you figure out what went wrong, you can build upon those mistakes and improve yourself for the next project. Don’t spend all your time beating yourself up because you didn’t do it right. Don’t blame yourself and say you are stupid. See this as a chance for personal growth and use this as an opportunity to grow.

You don’t have to be perfect. 

Just be the best version of yourself that you can be.

-Macy

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It a was cold and wet Earth Day of Service for 2016, but volunteers braved the weather and spent the day serving around Greater Reading. Were you there? See more #gotserviceAU photos here: http://www.alvernia.edu/about/holleran-center/gotserviceau-tagboard.html 

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It’s About Respect

Every day that I attend class, there is a guarantee that someone will be on their cell phone nearly the entire time. They’re either scrolling through Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Sometimes they’re playing a game. Either way, they’re glued to their cell phone as if nothing else matters.

I see this happening during 60 minute, 90 minute, and 3 hour classes. The duration has no effect on whether or a not a person will use their cell phone during class. The minute the professor starts speaking, I always see a cell phone pop out and get hidden beneath books so that person can play on their phone the entire class.

Many students get angry that a professor asks them to put their phone away. They scoff and say “I’m paying for my schooling, so if I want to sit on my phone all class I should be able to.” To some degree, that statement is true. You are the one paying for college (or your parents). You are the one taking the tests and doing the homework. Nobody can force you to do those things. You have to make the decision to do your homework, study, and do presentations on your own.

I understand that some classes may be easy for you and you don’t need to pay attention.

I understand that you are paying for your tuition and can do what you want.

I understand that you may hate a class and that’s why you don’t want to pay attention.

I understand that a class may be difficult and you’ve given up trying.

That’s not what this is about. This is about respect. 

When you sit on your phone all class, you show blatant disrespect to your professor. You are telling them that you don’t care about what they have to say, their opinions, or what they know. That’s their job. When you choose to sit on your phone and ignore them, you’re telling them their job is pointless.

Take a moment to stand in their shoes. Imagine that you were presenting and talking to a group about something you really enjoy and love. It could be a favorite subject, hobby, sport, etc. Imagine standing up there, excited to tell people about this thing that you love, and half of the group isn’t paying attention. Imagine trying to get them interested in what you are saying, only for them to continue to stare down and pay you no mind. How would you feel? Wouldn’t you feel as though it’s pointless to keep talking because half of the people aren’t interested? Wouldn’t you feel like they don’t respect you?

This is exactly what professors go through. It’s not that they’re trying to be a parent and tell you to get off your cell phone. Believe me, they don’t get any joy out of scolding you. They just want you to respect them. They want you to listen to them even if you are absolutely bored out of your mind. Being attentive is important.

I’m not saying I’m anywhere near perfect. I have been guilty of it too, but after realizing how disrespectful it is, I’ve stopped. I use my phone when I have down time or nothing to do. If the professor is talking, I may check it for time, but that is it.

It’s only a couple hours of your day that you sit in that room. Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram can wait. If anything, you’ll have more content to go through because you aren’t constantly on your phone. Look up from your phone, listen to your professor, and pay attention.

You never know what you might learn.

-Macy

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Understanding That College Student Who Is Always Busy

College students are busy people. Not all college students can sit and watch Netflix all day or party every weekend. Society has given people this misconstrued view of the typical college student. Most people I meet think that the average college student just goes to class, does homework occasionally, watches TV the rest of the time, spends the weekends partying, and does not do their work until Sunday night or the night before it is due.

I am not the “average” college student. 

I am a full time student.

Half of my classes give me homework that requires 3+ hours a night to do.

I work 8 hours a week.

I spend four hours or more a week doing things for Campus Activities Board. I also work events anywhere from 1-3 times a month.

I spend months preparing for the Sigma Tau Delta International Conference. We also meet 1-2 times a month for an hour or so.

I spend quite a few hours writing and editing articles for the Alvernian.

I began working on Zephyrus, the literary magazine, which requires reading through submissions, giving opinions, attending meetings, and eventually helping the main editors put together the magazine.

I know this sounds like I’m throwing my resume out there, but this is my daily life. These are things I do every day, every week, and/or every month. I am a busy person. On top of that, I have to find time to workout and spend time with my friends, family, and boyfriend. It can get extremely stressful, overwhelming, and tiresome.

I’m writing this because I want people to understand. I have encountered people who don’t understand why I cannot do something during a certain time. All they do is look at my academic schedule and say “Well, you don’t have class at that time, so why can’t you do * insert task* at this time?” It can get frustrating because people do not understand that many college students have more in their schedules than classes.

I want people to understand that there are busy college students out there. Many of us are involved in sports, clubs, honor societies, and/or have jobs. Even if someone is not as involved on campus, they may be working 40+ hours a week to pay for college. Everybody has a different schedule, but that does not mean that anyone is less busy.

I want people to understand that you need to be flexible for people who do not have flexibility in their schedule. 

If somebody tells you, “I can only see you from 2-3″, believe them. Appreciate the fact that they want to make time for you because they probably don’t have much time. It means they care and want to spend time with you. When you are trying to make plans with a busy person, understand that the times they give you are the times they are available. They are not trying to snub you, be stubborn, or make life difficult. People have called me “difficult” for having a lack of flexibility with my times. Just know those people are making an effort to spend time with you but also telling you that they have a limited amount of free time.

Never make a busy person feel guilty for missing something. I can guarantee you that they already feel guilty about missing it. I have missed numerous events, hangouts, and Wawa runs because I was too busy to go along or too tired from my busy day. Believe me, I wish I could have gone to all of those things. Don’t make a busy person feel guilty for being busy.

Last but not least, understand that when a busy person has time, they may not want to spend it with you. Sometimes when a busy person finally has time, they just want to lay down and relax. They may just want to have some time to themselves and that is okay. It has nothing to do with you. They may just want some time to reflect and relax!

Life becomes a lot easier for busy people when the people around them understand. Eventually, busy people will reach a point where they are not as busy anymore. Sports seasons will end, classes will end, and clubs will wrap up for the semester. When that time comes, you better believe the busy people will welcome your Netflix binge watching invitation with open arms.

-Macy

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Congratulations to senior nursing student Karli M. Focht of Shillington, PA for receiving a $500 scholarship! Karli was given this scholarship for being an outstanding nursing student at Alvernia University. Berks County by the Berks County Federation of Women’s Clubs (BCFWC) honored Karli with this award.

Pictured L - R, Judy Schwambach, Education Committee Chair, Karli Focht, Eleanor Shaner, President BCFWC.

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Tips for Interview Success

Interviews are a nerve wracking experience. You could be interviewing for an internship, an entry level job, or the job of your dreams. Whatever it may be, it can still make you extremely nervous in the days leading up to your interview. It may be the job that decides or changes your future. It may be an interview for a company you’ve wanted to work with for years. Interviews can put a lot of pressure on the interviewee because they want to make a good impression on the interviewer.

Family and friends will always try to tell you what to do for your interview: Dress proper! Get there early! Don’t wear that outfit! Make sure to always smile! Sit up straight! My favorite? “Just relax and be yourself, you’re going to do great!”

It’s hard to relax when it feels like there’s a lot on the line, isn’t it?

Though there are many helpful tips out there, it’s important to know the basics when preparing and going to an interview.

1. Dress for success. Yes, what you wear is extremely important. The first thing an interviewer does is size you up. What do they notice about your first? Your appearance. Most interviews require you to be dressed in business casual or business professional. You should wear a plain shirt with minimal patterns (stripes are okay). If you wear something too bright or patterned, it can give the interviewer the wrong impression. It is best to stick to solid colors for a sleek, professional look. Ladies, leave the 3″ heels and bulky jewelry at home! These two things can send interviewers the wrong message about you. It is best to stick to heels that are 1″ or less and simple jewelry to none at all. You’ll also want to get rid of any crazy nail polish you may have on and opt for a nude or beige color.

2. Have copies of your resume. This is something I have known people to not do when going to an interview. The interviewer does have a copy of your resume that you submitted, but when you go for the interview, they may want another copy to look at. How embarrassing is it if they ask for a copy of your resume and you don’t have it? It makes you look unprepared and disorganized. Always have a copies of your resume and keep them in a folder that will prevent them from getting damaged or wrinkled.

3. Sit up! Mom wasn’t telling you to sit up straight at the dinner table for nothing! Posture and body language are key things that interviewers watch. If you are slouching, crossing your arms over your chest, or sitting with your legs crossed and bouncing your leg, that tells the interviewer numerous things about you. It can tell them that you don’t really want the job, you are closed off, or you are anxious. It is best to sit up straight, with your feet firmly placed on the ground and hands folded on your lap. Proper posture and body language tells the interviewer that you are interested in the job, eager to have the job, and that you are confident in your abilities to do the job.

4. Send a ‘Thank You’ note when the interview is over. Sending a thank you note a day or two after the interview is not something many people do today. It is simply a follow-up “thank you for taking the time to interview me” note. This can leave a lasting impression on an interviewer. It can also allow you to mention some of your qualifications that may not have been touched on during the interview. Sending a thank you note leaves a good impression with the interviewer and could even be the thing that pushes you ahead of your competition. So why not take a few seconds to say thank you?

Interviews can be stressful, but they can be less stressful if you keep these tips in mind. Half of the battle is properly preparing for the interview. The better prepared you are, the more confident you will be when you go into the interview. The less stress you feel, the better you will perform. When you go to an interview prepared, confident, and feeling good, it just may be the thing that gets you the job of your dreams!

-Macy

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Find Your Passion

When I was a junior in high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my future. I knew I wanted to go to college, but I didn’t know what I wanted to study. Everyone around me was applying to be in programs like neuroscience, pre-med, nursing, and engineering. I just didn’t understand how everyone knew what they wanted to do at 17 years old. I barely knew what I wanted to wear in the morning.

Part of the problem was that I didn’t like any of that stuff. I wasn’t interested in science or math. I had always been a creative and artsy type person who liked to write, take pictures, design, and make crafts. With my entire family being in the medical field, it didn’t make it any easier. My mom is a doctor, my sister a biomedical engineer, and before he retired, my dad had been a nurses aide. From every possible angle, I was being pushed into the medical field because “that’s where the money is” and “you’ll always have a job”. 

I ended up checking off Communication as my major when I applied to colleges. It sounded interesting to me. Naturally, I got some backlash from my decision. I was still constantly being pushed into the medical field. I was told “you won’t make any money in that field” or “there won’t be any jobs in that field when you graduate”. It started to get to the point where I was embarrassed to tell people I was majoring in Communication because I would just get a slow head nod and an “oh” response.

Even as a freshman at Alvernia, I considered changing my major a thousand times. I looked into the Nursing program, the Criminal Justice program, and the Psychology program. In my heart, I knew it wasn’t what I wanted, but I felt like I had to change. After I looked into all of them, I found it was too late for me to change because I would be behind and graduate late. I stuck with Communication and added a History major.

I’m glad I did.

The Communication field is where I am meant to be. It took me some time to realize it, but when I did, it was the best feeling. My passion is here and in the History field. I find myself excited to learn and go to class. I feel like I am able to put my best skills to work and use them. I enjoy going to work every day and having something new to work on. I enjoy doing my homework (hard to believe, right?) because I am studying something I am passionate about and want to learn more about. It took me time, but I realized that those people who just nodded their heads without much to say didn’t actually know what Communication entailed or what I could do with it. There are jobs in this field. You can make money in this field (or any other field, for that matter). I am proud to tell people I am a Communication and History double major. I am happier than I ever would have been in another field. 

What I am trying to say is that you should follow what you are passionate about, regardless of what other people tell you. If you are passionate about helping others and want to be a nurse or occupational therapist, go for it. If you love psychology and want to study it, go for it. If math and business are your thing, study it. Sometimes people are so busy telling us who we should be, that we forget who we want to be. Take what you are passionate about and what you are good at and turn it into a career. If you study something you are passionate about, you will find it easier to learn. You will find the late nights of studying and long days of field work worth it because it is what you love and are passionate about. You will be much happier down the line if you have a job in a field you are passionate about, rather than being in a field that just has more money, better hours, etc. Life is too short to be miserable at your job or in your field of study. Find what you love and go for it!

As a final note, just remember that the old saying is true: If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life.

-Macy Storm, a proud & happy Communication & History major at Alvernia

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Real World Reflection: Learning to connect with medical patients

Alvernia senior Dylan James completed an internship at the newly opened Oakbrook Health Clinic in the fall of 2015, serving the residents of a severely poverty stricken area of the City of Reading.

Every household in Oakbrook is below 80% of the average household median income in Reading and 93% of the households are below 30%. That means that a family with a single mother and two children has less than $20,090 in household income.

With his eyes on medical school, James chose to intern at Oakbrook because it was a good fit for his future plans to serve local, low-cost primary care needs, and was only a short drive from campus.

None of the names in his reflection (below) are real.

I guess the best place to start would be Linda.

On my second day of work, I was sent in to see Linda and take her patient history, something that still put me out of my depth at that early juncture (it still does, but not to the same degree). Linda was a regular, diagnosed with everything under the sun and bound to be diagnosed with whatever she wasn’t already diagnosed with at some point in her life, if not by a doctor then by herself. She spoke a unique sort of fractured English in which she put emphasis on any uses of “the” and dragged out the last syllable of every sentence (“I have THE painnnnnnn. It’s in THE left armmmmm.”) Within five minutes she began to mention her crippling depression, within ten her suicidal ideation, and within fifteen was sobbing. She drew me into a hug, and I drew myself inwards and attempted to piece together why I was doing this. I’ve always been a worrywart about rules regarding peoples’ personal lives in an official setting; not so much the “legality” of it, but the morality. By what basis was it okay to send in an untrained person to hear the very private life story of another individual for educational purposes? Isn’t that, on some deep-down level, callous?

Every sit-down with a patient is like that. You’re trying to ask pertinent questions regarding their health, but before long you end up as the shoulder to cry on, or the witness to inner turmoil, or just the person who needs to be there to facilitate the patient’s venting. There’s a funny sort of cognitive dissonance to the whole thing. You’re sitting down with them in this very sterile and clean environment, specifically designed to be absent of personality and set up for maximum efficiency, while they pour out the dirtiest and most emotional facets of their lives. Before long the whole notion of separating the “medical world” of clinics and hospitals from the “real world” just dissolves because you can’t possibly reconcile the two as different; it’s a comfortable illusion, almost set up more for the patient than the provider.

Coming up with ways to cope with stress was also a fun activity. I had this crazy idea in the early weeks of working at the clinic that I should be doing something to separate that world from my own; build back up the illusion to prevent myself from thinking about the patients too much, their plights and crises. This idea came from the fact that I was losing sleep at this point, being kept awake by a few specific patient interviews. After a close friend knocked some sense into me and made me realize that the whole idea of compartmentalizing my life to minimize thinking about patients is something that can only eventually lead to a disaffected hardening of my outlook towards everything (which I thank him for), I gave up that tack and switched to something else, or four. All kinds of dumb little rituals like journaling and cataloguing emotions. But eventually I figured out the trick: it’s to not resist. You don’t look for ways to combat the stress, you simply let it happen. You let every patient break your heart.

The doctor who I was interning for remarked that my taking of patient histories improved over the course of the semester. I don’t attribute that to practice because I know the exact moment that the improvement happened. It was when I finally surrendered to the deluge and let it flow over me. It’s this odd blissful feeling, a kind of attached detachment, with gaze focused outwards rather than in. More of a Tao thing than a Zen thing I suppose.

We talk about growth a lot in relation to experiences like these, but I’m never sure what type of growth I’m supposed to be undergoing, or what to even look for in that regard. Sure, there was a lot of growth vis-à-vis the objective, medical side of this internship: learning proper patient history procedure; attaining proficiency in hypertension, diabetes, asthma, and hyperlipidemia; looking for patient cues that could indicate different diseases; etc. But I almost feel like the change in mindset and proper understanding trumps that in some ways. People have always walked up to me in public settings and started talking to me about their life for as long as I remember, but now I know how to respond to them. I can better be the ear that they so obviously desire, and maybe even a mouth to form words that could be useful to them.

Because really, that’s what this is all about in the end. It’s not about me, it’s about Linda and her omnipresent aches and pains, and Julio with his uncomfortable iron rod in his leg, and Yolanda who’s already quite an elderly lady but who comes in with her even more elderly mother, and Terrence with his gigantic head gash and paralyzed left side, and Charla with her two healthy kids, and Matt who’s honestly really quite rude, and Emily who really needed help finding a counselor on her insurance plan and who we finally did find one for in a triumphant moment (albeit one not in the county), and Henry who comes in with a bloody rag which he hands to me before disclosing that it’s a specimen of his semen because – by the way, he forgot to mention – he’s having blood in his semen. It’s this constantly rotating cast of characters that take precedence here. They’re still rotating even now, their faces taking turns for top billing in my head. I don’t think I’ll ever forget them, and I don’t want to.

— Dylan James is a senior biology student at Alvernia University.

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When Opportunity Knocks, Open the Door

College is a breeding ground for opportunity. You have the opportunity to better your education, meet new people, make new friends and connections, and enhance your skills. Where else are you going to be able to cash in on those benefits all in the same place? College is a great place to find opportunities on every corner.

When I came to college, I was the person who let opportunities pass. My anxiety would get the best of me every time I opened an e-mail about a cool internship. I always felt like I wasn’t good enough, skilled enough, prepared enough, etc. I would delete the e-mail and let someone else take advantage of the opportunity. I missed out and would find myself regretting it weeks later.

I tried my best to take opportunities as they came. I tried joining different clubs on campus to get involved, hoping that I could hone in on the opportunities Alvernia held. Every time I joined a club, however, I found myself not returning to meetings the following week. I just wasn’t interested in the opportunities those clubs had.

It wasn’t until I joined the Campus Activities Board (CAB) that I finally found my opportunity for advancement. I loved being apart of CAB and showed up to every meeting. I always worked events. I was CAB Member of the Month. I found myself looking forward to CAB meetings every week. Now, I serve on the Executive Board as the Secretary and Budget Manager.

CAB was the starting point for a long line of opportunities. After joining CAB, I joined Sigma Tau Delta, Alvernia’s English/Communication Honor Society. After being inducted, I was elected to serve as the Executive Board’s Vice-President. After that, I was offered a work study position in the Marketing Department. The opportunities continued to show up.

It may seem as though I got lucky, and that all these great opportunities came my way at once, but it didn’t happen that way. There were opportunities in between all of these things that I didn’t take, didn’t like, or did take and ended up finding out that it wasn’t right for me. Regardless, I still opened the door to these opportunities.

If there’s anything I want you to take from this, it’s these three things:

1. Look into every opportunity. You never know what an opportunity holds for you. It may not seem great on the surface, but once you look into it, it may peak your interest more than you thought. The opposite can happen too. You may find something you really like, but it may not turn out to be what you expected it to be. All that matters is that you look into every opportunity that is offered to you. If you like it, that’s great. If you don’t, there are always more opportunities.

2. Don’t feel like you have to settle. This is one of the most important things you can take away from what I’ve told you. There are always going to be better and more interesting opportunities out there for you. Don’t ever feel like you need to settle with the first thing you find. You’re going to come across better opportunities throughout life and there is no reason why you shouldn’t take advantage of those better opportunities.

3. Find what you love and make the most of it. This may seem obvious, but its true. If you find a club, activity, sport, etc. that you love, make the most of it. When you are passionate about an opportunity that has been presented to you, you will find yourself enjoying it more and wanting to participate. You’ll be able to meet people with the same passions and interests as you. You’ll be able to improve your communication and leadership skills and that will be something that will help you gain other opportunities in the future.

So when you’re out and seeking new opportunities, remember this: Don’t close the door on an opportunity until you see what it has to offer you.

-Macy