Kelsie Wymore surrounded by children on her recent ministry internship in Peru.
Lee University has recognized Kelsie Wymore as the 2016 recipient of the Zeno C. Tharp Award. She will be recognized for this honor again at Lee’s Commissioning service on Friday, May 6.
Established in 1955, this annual award is given to the Lee senior who shows the greatest promise of making a significant contribution to the church. It is named in honor of the sixth president of Lee who served from 1935-44. Each department may nominate one student for the award, and of these nominees a winner is selected by a faculty vote. Wymore was nominated by both the Theology and Language and Literature departments for the award.
“Kelsie is one of the most conscientious and spiritually mature students that I have taught,” said Dr. Lisa Stephenson, associate professor of systematic theology. “Her heart for the Lord and others is evident in everything she does, including living in Colombia at a safe house with young girls who have been neglected and abused.”
Ms. Wymore graduated summa cum laude in December 2015 with a 3.98 GPA and majors in Biblical/Theological Studies and Spanish. She was a Kairos Honors Scholar as well as a Centennial Gold Scholar and a recipient of the 2013 Who’s Who Among All-American Scholars Award. While at Lee, she was a member of Sigma Delta Pi, the Spanish Honor Society, a Spanish lab instructor, a Greek language tutor, a member and later treasurer of ACTS World Vision, and a resident assistant and floor leader in Nora Chambers Hall.
“Through my time at Lee, I have been given a vision for what life can look like when one focuses on God’s present calling,” said Ms. Wymore. “This calling shows what it means to be a child of God and to extend the same love that one has received to each person they encounter.”
In the community, Ms. Wymore worked with Big Pal Little Pal as secretary and chaplain, as an English as a Second Language tutor at Cleveland High School, a Kids Alive International summer intern in Peru, and as a summer camp counselor for Camp Vesper Point and Camp Travis. Her cross-cultural trip was to Columbia, where she is currently staying as a chaplain in Provision de Amor, a home for girls who have been rescued from sexually abusive situations.
“Kelsie models a commitment to Christ and a compassion for others that we believe will define her life,” said Dr. Jean Eledge, chair of the department of Language and Literature. “She is already making significant contribution to the Kingdom through her ministry this spring in Colombia, South America, and through her inspirational example of how one uses academic preparation to make a difference in individual lives and communities.”