By Cyndi Wittum
The Reverend Dr. Kenneth Clapp ’70, Senior Vice President and Chaplain of Catawba College, said he could not take credit for the rain stopping in time for graduation. It had been a gully washer going into the big day when the Class of 2017 crossed the stage with each graduate receiving his or her diploma. The sky still looked threatening, but by the time the commencement wrapped up, the sun was starting to shine on the 210 day program graduates.
Two of those graduates who had been roommates and co-edited the student newspaper, Hannah Davis and Brittany Beal, were all ready to celebrate. This may not sound unusual. Students often develop strong friendships and like to finish off college together with a special party or visit to one of the local restaurants before moving into the world for more intense adulting.
What makes Hannah and Brittany unique is that they have been best friends since they were two years old. Photos were on display at their families’ on-campus celebration showcasing fun times throughout the years. From learning to swim at the community pool, to the first day of school, to silly days with oversized glasses, the two were there side by side.
Many of us can’t keep up with our special people for more than a year or two, but these young ladies have walked many miles together, as well as drilling for tests, writing papers, going up and down through the teen years, and then as co-eds at Catawba. They are closing in on twenty years of buddy-hood and do not see any end in sight.
“She brought me here,” said Brittany, nodding at Hannah. Brittany had gone for a few classes at another college. “I just hadn’t found one I loved.”
Then Brittany was visiting Hannah at Catawba and decided, “Why not?” She had fun when she drove over, and she had a best friend in place before she ever put her foot to the gas pedal. With her college general education classes and some AP credits under her belt, she was able to slide in and keep pace for the two “almost sisters” to graduate together.
Hannah and Brittany are certainly not clones. Hannah tends to be serious, focused, and she gives a lot of thought to her decisions. She is an excellent leader. Brittany is going to get the party rolling. She is full of life, with sparkling eyes and a booming voice. She has strong leadership skills, but quite different than those of Hannah. Though different, the two graduates can just glance at one another and share messages that others may not pick up on.
Hannah has a degree in Communication and earned honor cords in both Communication and English. She also had her academic fraternity pens on her royal blue dress. Brittany found her field in English/Spanish and graduated with honors in English and Foreign Languages.
The next step for Hannah is to work at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Science, and Brittany plans to work for her father as she decides how to best leverage her bilingual combination degrees. This should keep the buddies geographically close for a few more years. After that, who knows?
Friendships are made and developed in college. Hannah and Brittany just built more memories in a lifetime of good times. They can always share Homecoming at Catawba, and that is worth a lot. Wherever the road takes them, it’s pretty obvious that Hannah and Brittany are friends for life, which is a true treasure.
