Push out the Walls. Take off the Blinders.
This story originally appeared in Archways Magazine's Fall 2016 issue.
By Amanda Broulik
On a chilly afternoon last February, two strangers sat down to lunch at Nebraska Wesleyan. They were women from different generations—opposites in many ways.
One was Mary Sue Harris, piano teacher, philanthropist and wife of the late state senator and Lincoln mayor, Bill Harris. The other was Grace Brunick-Clark (’19) from Blair, Neb., one of the first class of Access NWU Scholarship recipients.
The two were meeting because Harris funded Brunick-Clark’s Access Scholarship.
Brunick-Clark was nervous. What if Harris wasn’t impressed? What if she thought with regret, “This is the person I’m helping?”
“I was afraid she wouldn’t like me,” she admitted. But Harris, with her ebullient, nurturing personality and her penchant for calling everyone “darling,” put her at ease. “We talked about music and her experiences, my plans for the future and life in general,” Brunick-Clark said. “When I first got this scholarship, I didn’t realize there was an actual person funding it. Now, I realize I have someone supporting me through this process. Someone who cares about me succeeding.”
Harris also left their lunch feeling better. “The whole experience has enriched me,” she said. “I got to talk with Grace, walk around the campus, see the students coming and going. It made me feel like I was part of it all. I knew that what I was doing was impacting Grace, and I so look forward to watching her grow.”
The meeting led Harris to recall her own liberal arts experience. “I remember distinctly the first time I realized that what I was studying in history was also what I was studying in English and in music. I got a whole, all-embracing picture of the world. A liberal arts education allows you to push out the walls and take off the blinders.”
She’s heartened to see Brunick-Clark push and explore in similar ways. Brunick-Clark is a biology major who also plays flute in the symphonic band and sings in the choir. And she has a clear vision of her future.
“I’m going to continue to work toward my biology degree, secure an internship at the Henry Doorly Zoo, and study abroad next spring,” she said with a flash of confidence. “I have a whole plan. I want to go to grad school in Florida and go into a career in ocean conservation.”
Before that lunch, the two were strangers. Today, when Harris talks about Brunick-Clark, she sounds like a proud parent. And if Brunick-Clark hits any bumps in the road at NWU, she knows she has a supporter and confidante close by.
For Harris, the decision to support an Access NWU Scholarship was obvious. “Sharing is easy; making sure it’s focused correctly is the challenging part. But, with the Access NWU program and the opportunity to support Grace, I know it’s focused perfectly.”