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Camille Medema (Grand Rapids,
Mich.) |
Camille Medema knows the value of a team. The standout Calvin track and
cross country runner was able to reflect on her life as a runner in taking
a semester off. Medema, a senior, spent the fall semester of her junior
year in Honduras on the Calvin Spanish study abroad program. She returned
to cross country last fall and was part of a team that placed 17th nationally
in NCAA Division III.
The study abroad experience was new for Medema not only because of the
culture she was immersed in, but also because it was the first time she
had ever missed a season of running. When she looks back on the experience,
Medema realizes what a great choice she made. "It was a good thing
for me to do," she said. "I needed to spend some time away,
look at other possibilities in my life. I was also able to speak Spanish,
which I needed."
Medema, a graduate of Grand Rapids Christian High School, is in Calvin's
nursing program and plans to attend school for a fifth year, using her
final eligibility for cross country this fall. "The decision was
really a matter of my major," she said. "I knew I would need
to go a fifth year to have Spanish and nursing, so I decided to get the
Spanish in Honduras." Medema views the semester away as a connection
to a life after college and running. The time helped her begin to think
of her future: "I will look into working with Hispanic populations
because it is a growing need in the United States. I am also interested
in working abroad if the right situation comes up—now I have the
experience to base my choices on."
After her semester away from Calvin, Medema gained a new perspective
on what the team meant to her life. "I would talk to the team from
Honduras and realize how much I missed it. They would be preparing for
a race and I wasn't part of it for the first time. It was a strange feeling
for me. But I knew what I was doing was very important in my life."
Medema returned to track in the spring of 2005 and qualified for the
national meet in the 800-meter run, then started the cross country season
by taking first overall in the MIAA Jamboree in September with a time
of 18:43. She was an integral part of a Calvin women's team that reached
the national meet again after a year's absence and has made nationals
16 out of the past 17 years.
"It was an exciting year," Medema said. "Things were up
and down and the final meet was chaotic, but it was a great season overall.
It was great to be a part of the team again."
Medema went from an underclassman on the team to being a leader upon
her return, as Calvin's team featured nine freshmen runners this past
season. "The season was great from the beginning; I loved all the
freshmen," she said. "I was having a lot of fun, and I surprised
myself a little bit."
So Medema will return to a team that brings all but one of its top-10
runners back. "I am really excited for next year. I now realize how
much I love running and the whole team, something I took for granted before.
The friendship and fellowship this team has is unmatched; I am glad to
be able to enjoy it for one more year."
But most importantly for Medema, she has a new perspective on the things
important to her life, and to her future.
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