Thomas M. McMahon remembers an elderly woman’s sarcastic comment when he served in the Peace Corp in Bangladesh
Lives of service add up
Reading Mayor tells Alvernia College graduating class
(READING) – Reading Mayor Thomas M. McMahon remembers an elderly woman’s sarcastic comment when he served in the Peace Corp in Bangladesh.
There was so much poverty, so much misery, what difference could a twenty-one-year American make “more than a drop in the bucket?”
“ My drop will help fill the bucket,” he told the woman. “And someday the bucket will be full.”
McMahon was the commencement speaker today (May 15) during the May graduation exercises at Alvernia College. He also received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. More than 270 students received masters, bachelors and associates degrees during the afternoon ceremony on the College’s Reading, Pa., campus.
Mayor McMahon urged the graduates to lead lives of service. “Service to others is the mark of an educated person,” he said. “Your intrinsic value is what you have to give back to others.”
Included in this year’s graduating class were the first students to graduate Alvernia College with a bachelor of science degree in nursing. Previously, Alvernia offered a two-year associates degree program, but expanded the curriculum in response to better meet the needs of students and health care providers.
Also a number of physicians and health care administrators received masters of business administration degrees after completing a special program offered in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Medical Society. The physicians completed much of their coursework through online instruction, and gathered on campus several times during their program for classroom instruction and evaluation.
Among the advice McMahon had for the graduates was to anticipate challenges “and approach them [challenges] with fortitude.”
“ Stuff will go wrong,” he said, paraphrasing a popular bumper sticker, and citing examples ranging from foul weather to getting stuck behind slow drivers. Being prepared for challenges, especially the unexpected challenges, he explained, is the best way to face them successfully.
He also stressed that graduates “always be in the service of others.” Since his days in the Peace Corps, McMahon has been active as a community leader and volunteer. In Berks County, he has served organizations such as Berks Community Television to Saint Joseph’s Medical Center. Assuming each member of this year’s graduating class lives another 60 years, he calculated that these graduates will collectively have 16,000 years of service in which to make a difference.
“ You might think that today marks a day of conclusion, but is not an end, but a beginning.”
“ Keep looking for buckets.”
