I absolutely hate being wrong about things – it’s one of my biggest pet peeves.
When I started college at Gannon, I made it a point to think of Gannon as just a school – and that’s what it felt like to me.
I was only on campus a few hours out of the day for classes and then I went back home. It was almost like an extension of high school – just without the overly zealous dress code Nazis and constant sense of “please get me out of here.”
But as the years went by, Gannon started to feel more like a second home – and I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about that.
I’m not really a sappy person. I don’t get sentimental unless I’m really comfortable with the person I’m talking to and I absolutely mean it.
I can be a little rough around the edges – anybody who knows me knows that. But the people who really know me know that somewhere – really, really deep down inside of my so-called soul – I do actually have emotions.
These past two years that I have been a part of the staff at The Gannon Knight have been my absolute best years in college and it’s all because of the staff.
I have come to love my little newspaper family. We have fun every Tuesday night we’re putting out the paper – or at least as much fun as you can have on a caffeine-induced, pizza-fueled frenzy.
We even hang out outside of the time that we’re obligated to be together – and anybody who voluntarily spends time with me is either a little masochistic, genuinely enjoys my company or both.
I have made some genuine, lifelong friends at Gannon – something that I never really had before I moved to Erie.
Growing up, I moved a lot, so I never had the same friends for more than two years and even if I managed to keep in touch with them, we usually grew apart.
At Gannon, I have found people that I can be myself around. I can make stupid and borderline offensive jokes and they laugh at them instead of giving me dirty looks – most of the time.
I can complain about college and how I have no money or life and they sympathize with me because they’re in the same boat.
I’ve also had one of the best mentors that I could’ve asked for here.
Frank has been my adviser since day one at Gannon and has helped guide me through college, internships, what to do after graduation and life, in general.
I owe a lot to Frank – he has affected me in profound ways that I can’t even begin to explain, but will be forever grateful for.
I never thought Gannon and the people that I’ve met here would impact me so much – and I absolutely hate being wrong.
But this is one thing that I’m so glad I was wrong about.

SAMANTHA GRISWOLD
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