For Immediate Release
Office of Mrs. Bush
May 17, 2003
Remarks by Mrs. Bush at 204th Commencement of Georgetown University, School of Nursing and Health Studies
Georgetown University
Thank you for the warm welcome. Thank you, President DeGioia, Dean
Keltner, distinguished faculty and alumni of Georgetown University and
the School of Nursing and Health Studies. Welcome parents, family
members, guests and, especially the class of 2003. I bet when you were
dissecting cats in Dr. Angerio's class four years ago, you never
thought this day would come. After grading some of your papers, he
probably didn't either.
Today marks the culmination of many years of determination and hard
work - many years of sleep-deprivation, take-out, doing your own
laundry and circling this campus for a parking spot. Congratulations to
all of you - now it's time to get a job and pay those parking tickets.
Congratulations especially to the parents. Many of you have written
your last tuition check. That must be nice. President Bush and I are
still writing them.
Today is a day you have imagined for your sons and daughters since
they were born. You've worked hard to send them to one of the top
universities in the country - and their graduation is an affirmation of
your support. These graduates will show their appreciation throughout
their lives as they work to improve their communities and the world.
But graduates, there is no better time than now to thank your parents,
family, and teachers whose hard work has brought you to this day - so I
invite you to give them a big round of applause.
Today is bittersweet for parents. You are proud, yet anxious -
unsure of what the world holds for your children - and what an empty
nest holds for you. Author Erma Bombeck put it best when she said,
"Graduation day is tough for adults. They go to the ceremony as
parents. They come home as contemporaries. After twenty-two years of
child-rearing, they are unemployed."
I remember the day our girls graduated from high school and headed
off to college. They say parents often have to get out of the house
when their kids leave because it gets lonely. Everyone deals with it in
different ways. But I told George I thought running for President was a
little extreme.
Congratulations to the faculty of the School of Nursing and Health
Studies. You've done a wonderful job of shaping the minds and talents
of this class. Thank you also for the honorary degree you're
conferring upon me today. I am thrilled to become a member of the
Georgetown family. I just hope no one calls me Dr. Laura.
Class of 2003, thanks to your parents and teachers, you've received
one of the finest educations in the world. And you've chosen one of the
most noble of professions. As a Jesuit university, Georgetown's
tradition of social teaching inspires you to respect and cherish life,
to love and serve your neighbor, and to use faith and service to others
as guiding principles.
You entered this university as individuals and today, you leave as
part of a larger family. You have experienced success and failure,
saving GUS and sometimes - not. Here at Georgetown, on the second floor
of Lauinger Library, on the Levy Esplanade - at the Tombs and the
Waterfront - you have learned the concepts and skills that will guide
you in your careers. But more importantly, you have learned who you are
and who you want to be. A Georgetown degree is impressive - but the
true value of your education is not in a piece of paper - it is in the
person you have become.
Universities are often measured by what students become. Here, the
measure is who students become. And you have become compassionate and
skilled adults who are putting service at the forefront of your lives.
Today, you will no longer hope to be nurses, scientists, and health
care professionals - you already are. Throughout the world patients
wait for the comfort of your care - cures wait to be discovered - and
sound policy waits to be enacted. America will need one million nurses
by the year 2010.
But the health care professionals of the future will be expected to
do more - you must be reformers, politicians, advocates, and mediators.
Our country faces many challenges - nursing shortages, rising
healthcare costs and evolving technology. But the skills and values
you've gained here - leadership, a continual quest for knowledge, and a
commitment to service - will prepare you to meet these challenges.
Remember too what has driven you in the past four years - to improve
the health and well-being of all people. This mission has also inspired
you to perform more hours of service than any other school at
Georgetown. You don't simply talk service - you live it.
Dorothy Fink lives service. As a volunteer at the Lombardi Cancer
Center, she worked with a young leukemia patient named Brittany. She
held her hand during chemotherapy and talked to her when she was
discouraged. They became friends. Brittany taught Dorothy the
importance of treating the whole patient rather than just the disease.
And Dorothy showed Brittany that there are people willing to help you
overcome your greatest challenges. Today Brittany is in remission and
will graduate from high school in June.
Because of Brittany, Dorothy started a science program for
pediatric cancer patients to teach them about medicine. Dorothy created
projects like the Science of Soda where kids make secret potions.
Dorothy, I know you will continue to make us proud at Georgetown
Medical School and someday as a pediatric oncologist.
Since the moment Renee Cherkezian stepped on campus she has worked
to create awareness of breast cancer. She passed out shower cards and
recruited her rowing team to make cookies for bake sales. During crew
races, Renee set up information tables on the Potomac and held raffles
to raise nearly 12 thousand dollars for breast cancer initiatives.
Renee used some of the proceeds to buy an examination table for
women with disabilities in memory of Professor Sandra Welner. Renee
believes that public service is "supporting the community to the best
of your ability and empowering others to serve." Renee, you have
undoubtedly done this during your time at Georgetown - and I have no
doubt you will continue to impress us as a nurse in the intensive care
unit.
Like Dorothy and Renee, all of you are inspiring examples of
altruism and service. I also try to set an example through my work. And
according to some kindergarten students, I do some pretty extraordinary
things. They wrote to tell me that they think I help the President with
his paper work and help him clean up his office. I take care of him
when he is sick and put cold cloths on his head. I feed the dogs and
cook carrot soup for dinner. And I shovel the snow and feed the birds.
But the fact is, I get to take part in memorable moments like this
and try to pass along any pearls of wisdom. And, of course, a
commencement speaker is supposed to give some grand life advice - or
issue a call to action to make the world a better place. I don't have
to do either for this class - you are the advice I would give to others
and you are already making a difference in the world.
But if I could tell one thing, it would be this - Take time for
yourself. You have committed yourselves to a demanding profession -
one that will tax you physically and emotionally, as well as
professionally. And you will not simply be giving at work - marriage,
parenting and relationships also require constant attention. All of
this giving will leave you exhausted unless you give to yourself as
well.
Think about everything you have accomplished in the past four
years. Before you leave today, stand on the Hilltop - maybe one last
time for some of you - and smile. Appreciate who you have become.
Nathaniel Hawthorne said, "Happiness is a butterfly, which, when
pursued, is always just beyond your grasp - but which, if you will sit
down quietly, may alight upon you."
So take time for yourself. Look up at the sky and try to count all
of the stars. Laugh out loud in the movie theater. Order a full-fat
latte. Say 'So what' when something discouraging happens to you. Jump
into the ocean with all your clothes on. Read a book from cover to
cover in one afternoon. Appreciate the little things in life and -
above all - the people in your life. Say 'I love you' to someone every
day - especially to yourself. Love those closest to you and cherish
your family and friends. You will face many challenges in life, and you
will make mistakes. And these will be the people who will pick you up.
Remember your faith and your commitment to serve God and each
other. Your faith and service to others defines your humanity. It is
what gives life meaning. You are about to begin one of the most noble
and honorable forms of public service. Every one of you has a calling -
a calling true to yourself, and true to your aspirations. Answer that
calling with the skills and values you've gained here - with
leadership, with a continual search for knowledge and with service to
others. You've been led by your heart and it will be your compass
throughout your career and your life.
It is said that to be happy a person needs just three things: love,
purpose and hope. Graduates of the Class of 2003, you have the love of
everyone here; you have a purpose to improve the health and well-being
of all people; and you have hope that you can make the world a better
place. So be happy graduates - go out and fulfill your pledge to care
for others and for yourself. Congratulations.
###
|