Erik’s look back at four years

By: Erik Schneider, Contributor

During the past four years of attending Canisius, I would say this: This has been a journey that I’ll never forget. After being out of school since 2011 from Lockport High School, I never thought that I would return to school, do homework, take tests, quizzes, write essays and complete projects. In the end, I’m very grateful for making the decision. In school, I have had to juggle working full-time in the Facilities Management Department. I have worked so hard to continue to overcome my learning disability and not weigh myself down. I’m so proud of myself to have the resources that were provided for me, such as the Griff Center with mentoring, tutoring and having my tests read aloud. I want to thank everyone in the Griff Center including Dr. Mark Harrington, Jen Herrmann, Rachel Massaro, Tracy Callaghan, Dr. Jen Desiderio, Dr. Joshua Russell, Angela Bufalino and Sierra Bonerb for everything. I appreciate their time, support and encouragement, which gave me a lot of confidence in myself.

There’s a lot of thanks to go around and I know that it won’t fit on the page but I first want to say thank you to my family. To my parents Mary and George: thank you for your support on my college journey. You both have helped me with my studies and are always there for me. I love you both very much and want to thank you for being awesome parents. To my three oldest siblings Patrick, Andria and Alyssa and to my brother-in-law Derek, thank you for helping me with my college journey and my studies. You all have been so supportive and I’m proud to be your baby brother. To my three nieces Camille, Aria and Nola, I love you girls so very much and I can’t wait for you to see your uncle walk across the stage at graduation. To all of my friends and family from Toastmasters to the Celtic Festival, thank you for all of your support and love.

To my Canisius friends who became my family past and present, I’m so deeply humbled and grateful to be your friend. Thank you to all of you for saying hi to me in the halls: the positive fistbumps always make my days brighter. I also want to thank some of my coworkers past and present in the Facilities Management Department: Frank Clark, Donald Hamilton, JuJu Patton, John Parfinski, Elijah Lee, Mark Gaiser, Donald Bell, Nancy Mercado and Steve Huff for their support as well.

Well, that’s it. This has been a blast and I enjoyed every single minute of it. Sending you all my love. Take care, be well, be safe and enjoy life.

All the best,

Erik J. Schneider, James Bond enthusiast