Justin Schneider
June 02, 2007 07:51 pm
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justin.schneider@heraldbulletin.com
Father took daughter into his arms.
His dress blues intertwined with her scarlet red robe as flashbulbs exploded all around.
It was a moment worth traveling 6,000 miles for.
Lt. Col. Jay Jerrils of the 138th Signal Battalion of the Indiana National Guard saw his daughter Kathryn graduate from Liberty Christian School Saturday after returning home from Iraq earlier in the week.
“It’s just a blessing to be back here, to be with my family on this special day,” said Jerrils, who left Indiana in May 2006. “I’ve been looking forward to getting back and enjoying that home-cooked meal.”
Jerrils earns two weeks of leave during his 12-month deployment, and he arrived in Anderson late on Wednesday. When his leave expires, he will return to Iraq for six more weeks of active duty.
“My soldiers are important to me, and we make sure they put in early for their leave,” Jerrils said. “A lot of them use the time to be there for children’s births, Christmas and things like that.”
His wife, Dana, said the family had been celebrating with plenty of “hugs and kisses.” Jerrils’ daughter Kathryn said she trusted in God to bring her father home for graduation.
“You never know for sure, but I had faith that God wanted our family to be together for this,” she said. “This is where God wanted him to be.”
Kathryn was one of 32 Liberty Christian students who on Saturday turned their tassels, the largest graduating class in the school’s history. As each senior crossed the stage, Jerrils handed them a coin, the same coin that was given to members of his unit.
“This coin has an inscription from Ephesians 6:11-18, about the armor of God,” Jerrils said. “Of all the coins that I’ve been given, this one has meant the most to me.”
In honor of Jerrils’ presence, Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., spoke during the ceremony, commending the work done by American service personnel overseas. To the graduates, he spoke of how God reveals the purpose of life.
“As we make our way in life, God’s revealed will has a big payoff,” he said. “In my 48 years, I’ve found that it’s getting up every day and beginning the day with prayer. The clearer God’s revealed will becomes, the less important his unrevealed will becomes.”
Salutatorian Jonathon Huff and valedictorian Christopher Horner were given the opportunity to express themselves to their classmates. Huff warned the class of 2007 not to get caught up in the material world and to focus on lasting acts.
“We should live for things of eternal significance,” Huff said. “Everything else is a waste of time. Don’t waste your life.”
Brian Dougherty, superintendent of Liberty Christian, reminded students to remember the past and think of their responsibilities to the community during the season of celebration.
“Today is a huge milestone in your life,” Dougherty said. “A milestone is when something happens that changes the course of life. There are three common factors to milestones: They are full of community, they are full of remembrance and they are full of celebration.”
Shannon Dare, secondary principal at Liberty Christian, called upon the graduates to remember the responsibility to their faith.
“This class is highly talented,” Dare said. “I believe, and it is the opinion of the staff, that this class is using its talents to serve God. That’s the most important thing you can do.”
An honorary diploma was given to the parents of David Staley, who was killed in 2001 in a moped accident. Staley would have graduated with the Liberty Christian class Saturday.
“We are extremely grateful and appreciative to find a place in this ceremony, at which our son would have graduated, to be remembered,” said Charles Staley, David’s father.
Staley also announced the first three recipients of the David Staley Memorial Scholarship Fund. Christopher Horner, Jillian Riffey and Kent Wohlberg were each awarded $2,500.
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