Happy Mother’s Day!
We’ve heard it said time and again, mother knows best. More phone calls are made on Mother’s Day than any other day of the year. These conversations with mom often cause phone traffic to increase by as much as 37 percent, but for Jessup students Ryan Irvine and Tim Welty, connecting with mom doesn’t necessarily require a phone call. During the academic year, it’s as simple as a walk across campus. “Most people don’t even know our moms work here,” the lively pair said in unison. Irvine and Welty became roommates at the start of the 2023 academic year and will be roomies again this fall. Irvine is a digital communication, art and design major while Welty is pursuing a business degree.
“It means a lot to my mom to know I’m here at Jessup,” Irvine said. “It’s actually really convenient having her here because we can catch up whenever we want, which is nice, especially during baseball season when I have less time to check-in.” Welty put it this way, “Simply put, I love my mom and I know that if she didn’t work here, I wouldn’t see her as much.” The duo agree that having their moms work on campus makes their mother-son relationship stronger because they are more accessible to share everyday happenings in their lives.
There is something about checking in with our moms that makes us feel better, sometimes just reminiscing about them can draw us closer too. Welty’s favorite childhood memory involves outings with his mom to get a bacon gouda sandwich from Starbucks and the great conversations that were had while Irvine recalls his mom’s silly antics of pretending to fall asleep and snoring like a chainsaw.
Welty expressed some of the qualities he likes best about his mom. The unassuming way she brings people together, how she is kind, social, loving and funny. For those who have the pleasure of interacting with the administrative assistant to the president, they know Julie Welty is definitely funny. It’s rare to be around her without having a laugh or two and when meeting Tim, it’s apparent the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.
Irvine appreciates his mom’s superpower ability to be an amazing listener, mainly because he says he talks so much. “She’s not only good at listening, she laughs hysterically at my jokes! Whenever I read her jokes on the Laffy Taffy wrappers, she bursts out laughing and says it’s my delivery that makes the joke so funny.”
As the operations and administrative specialist in Jessup’s School of Natural & Applied Sciences, Kerry Irvine also pours into the lives of Jessup’s nursing students. “I’m pretty involved with the entire process for our students from application to acceptance and then throughout the program,” she said. “I have a special place in my heart for these students and regularly pray for them to succeed.”
The same is true for Julie Welty in the president’s office. “There are some students I’ve met around campus who know they can drop by for a chocolate from my desk or a little cheerleading reminding them they can do hard things,” she said. “Sometimes we share a quick prayer to calm any anxious thoughts.”
Both Julie Welty and Kerry Irvine knew Jessup would be a good fit for their kids because of the care and concern faculty and staff have for students. “Most parents don’t get to see what it’s like for their students first hand, or have a hard time with them moving away,” Kerry Irvine said. “I want them to know there are so many other moms and dads here at Jessup who will cover their kids in prayer and help guide them like their own.”
Julie Welty put it this way, “There’s something incredible about the community Tim has found here at Jessup. The circles he has on campus from student life to dorm living to faculty and classmates have been life giving. I believe we all are looking for a place to belong and fit in, and Tim has found that here at Jessup. Me too.”
Maybe mother does know best after all.
