Letters to the Chronicle

Remembering Sarah Hamilton

I was saddened to read about the passing of Sarah Hamilton last week. I enjoyed my three summers working for Sarah and the New Students Program. Working for her was one of the best experiences I had while attending the University. Her dedication and hard work was an inspiration to me.

I still remember my first interview in 1996 for the NSP counselor position. The first thing Sarah said to me was "I don't shake hands" and then she asked why she should hire a sophomore when there are many other students who have much more campus knowledge than me. I told her to take a chance on me. Sarah then replied, "I don't like surprises!"

While at UMass and after graduation, Sarah was a second mother to me. Her door was always open for me to talk. She always listened to me talk about school or my personal life. I remember we had a rare day off during the summer and Sarah asked if I wanted to play a round of golf with her. At that time I had just picked up the game which Sarah had been perfecting for years.

We woke up early and played 18 holes at Cherry Hill, [which included a] lesson from the Sarah Hamilton Golf School. I came back to campus and the rest of NSP staff was shocked I spent the morning with Sarah.

Sarah had such pride for the University. She expected all of her staff to be hard-working. If it were not for working for Sarah and NSP, I would never have found that I enjoyed working in student affairs.

The University is known for its high quality of education; in my mind Sarah was the best educator I ever met while at UMass. The lessons I learned from Sarah Hamilton will last a lifetime.

The University will miss Sarah and her dedication, but the roughly 120,000 students that passed through the New Students Program should be grateful for the services she provided to them.

Sarah, thanks for all your love and support, the University and I will miss you.

DAVID FOLLICK
Westbury, N.Y.
David Follick received his
B.A. in Political Science in
1998 and his M.Ed. in 2001.