< Previous48 WWW.FAYTECHCC.EDU “It was one of the best experiences,” she said. “I keep in touch with the people I met in Texas and have built relationships with them. They are all passionate people.” The scholarship reception also served as the first time Bammel met other students studying in her field as a dual student. She studies online at FTCC. She’s also enrolled at East Carolina University, studying interpersonal relations and business studies. Her major is through the institution’s “university studies” program, allowing her to create her own degree. Bammel graduated from ECU in December 2019. She plans to graduate from FTCC in 2021. A future in the funeral industry wasn’t always the plan for Bammel. She initially wanted to pursue culinary arts. Her interest changed, shifting to helping people. Then, her family moved from New Jersey to North Carolina, settling in Huntersville. Graduating from William Amos Hough High School required completing a two-year senior project. She chose the Serenity House, a hospice home. The project required only 15 volunteer hours. Bammel accrued more than 100 before she graduated. A NEW OUTLOOK Bammel was only 16 when she volunteered at Serenity House and she was deeply affected by her experiences there. One patient’s final moments were with Bammel. She and another volunteer made sure the elderly woman was comfortable. Bammel isn’t sure if the woman knew she was there. But Bammel stood by the bed, placing her hand nearby. The patient’s family couldn’t make it in time. “It was one of the most peaceful things I ever saw,” Bammel recalled. She admitted at first, she didn’t know what to do when the patient died. “We wanted to make sure everyone passed away in a respectable and dignified manner. I realized this was a population I want to work with.” She added, “My main focus was the patients. Being able to care for others and learn about how we need to take better care of our seniors, it was absolutely amazing. I learned so much about the whole process of healthcare to passing away. It’s a beautiful thing to be there for people as they’re going through the process.” Sarah Bammel walks toward Joyner Library in the heart of East Carolina University’s campus. At ECU, Bammel is pursuing university studies with a minor in French and also studying to earn her associate’s degree in funeral service education at FTCC. Bammel’s interest in the field stems from the time she volun- teered at a hospice house in western North Carolina. She said, “I learned so much about the whole process of healthcare to passing away. It’s a beautiful thing to be there for people as they’re going through the process.”FTCC ANNUAL REPORT 49 Bammel also interviewed a local funeral director for her senior project. He became a mentor to her. Others have paused when Bammel tells them the funeral industry is her career choice, given her outward appearance – a petite, young woman, she said. Bammel’s passion and the funeral industry’s purpose intertwine. “The entire industry is not about what you want or need, it’s about what the client, the patient, and the family needs,” she said. “You have to put them above yourself. That was something that resonated with me, and I love it. I knew I belonged in an industry that’s really care-oriented, being an advocate for the deceased, the family.” Bammel enrolled into FTCC’s program after her freshman year at ECU. FTCC’s Department Chair of Funeral Service Education, Ronald Montgomery Jr., encouraged her to apply for the SCI scholarship. Receiving the scholarship was a “godsend” for Bammel because now she won’t have to take out a loan. The award will go toward tuition. Montgomery was the first person Bammel told about the scholarship win. “I am very proud of her accomplishments, and I look forward to working with her as she progresses through the program,” Montgomery wrote in an email. “She has a bright future ahead of her in the profession of funeral service.” D uring summer 2019, Bammel studied abroad in Europe, visiting Strasbourg, France; Germany; castles and even cemeteries. A highlight from the trip was seeing a variety of funeral homes in France and learning the differences between their funeral industry and America’s. She walked down streets and saw multiple funeral homes with flowers and statues in the windows. The trip reinforced why she cares about learning other cultures. “It’s really important to understand the people in your community,” she said. “Everyone is so different, and that directly correlates to other peoples’ needs. I never thought I would be bilingual, and now that I’m getting good with French, I’m thinking of taking up Spanish.” Looking ahead, Bammel aspires to work as a licensed funeral director and embalmer. She also wants to teach funeral classes as a professor – even internationally. While in school, she’s doing work that’s not required. She’s researching with an ECU professor about how funeral directors use nonverbal communication in the industry. She admitted her research has been met with some criticism from those in the field, suggesting she’s wasting her time, even calling it pointless. There’s one thing the SCI scholarship told Bammel: in her own words, she’s on the right path. The judges selecting her as a scholarship recipient made Bammel feel heard. And some of the work she’s doing, from the research paper to pursuing a bachelor’s degree, isn’t necessarily required to be successful. She does it because she “wants” to. Receiving the scholarship from the panel and working with mentors reminded Bammel, “They understood all these things I’m doing is for a purpose,” she said. “I don’t have to do any of this, but I do it because I’m passionate. Thinking of where I was five years ago, this has become my new life passion, and how much I’ve changed since then. It will pay off in the end. And without FTCC, this wouldn’t be possible. Really.” Sarah Bammel, above, takes a study break inside Joyner Library on East Carolina University’s campus. One thing Bammel has learned about the funeral service industry is that it focuses on the needs of the patient and the family. Bammel has known since she was a teenager that she wanted to work in a field helping others. At first, she thought she wanted to become a nurse. Her parents expressed some hesitancy about her choosing the funeral industry as a career but “they’re fully on board and fully supportive now that they’ve seen how passionate I am,” Bammel said. ON THE RIGHT PATH50 WWW.FAYTECHCC.EDU THIS IS WHO WE AREFTCC ANNUAL REPORT 51 What comes to mind when you hear “Fayetteville Technical Community College”? The trades. Arts. Health programs. The Rose Garden. Veterans. Younger students. A community partner. We are all of these things and more. FTCC can be what our students, faculty, staff, community and more need it to be. A place to start. A place to start over. A place to continue what has already been started. There’s a path for the budding graphic designer with aspirations of designing video games. A track for the high school student who is still deciding on a career but wants to double major in arts and science. A route for the blue-collar worker who spent more than 20 years in an office and now wants to pursue construction. The military veteran who served his country and repaired armored vehicles and now wants to do the same at a local dealership. Or the student who wants to save on debt and studies at FTCC for two years before transferring to an elite college or university. As a College offering more than 280 occupational, technical, general education, college transfer and continuing education programs, there’s something for everyone. From the subjects that will become a student’s favorite or hobby, to the friendships developed by walking to class in Cumberland Hall or sitting on a bench waiting for a bus, from the instructors and students who develop a bond with each other that will last after graduation day, this is what has shaped our college since 1961. Our name has changed with the times through the years, but the mission of who we are, and how that goal is met has remained constant and it will last beyond today: to “serve our community as a learning-centered institution to build a globally competitive workforce supporting economic development.” This is what we do. This is who we are. This is what we accomplish together for those now, and the ones who will come after. This is who we are. 52 WWW.FAYTECHCC.EDU Double exposure photography by FTCC student Jeannie Dang-Vu, Advertising & Graphic Design Department, 2019. FTCC ANNUAL REPORT 53 Double exposure photography by FTCC student Jeannie Dang-Vu, Advertising & Graphic Design Department, 2019. DOUBLE EXPOSURES The past year brought opportunities and recognition to students studying advertising and graphic design at FTCC. The department hosted the “2019 Portfolio Night” in the Virtual College Center atrium on the Fayetteville campus. The annual event highlighted works of the program’s students before they graduated in spring 2019. Portfolio Night welcomed the public, businesses, organizations and others interested in offering employment and freelance opportunities. The works of FTCC’s Advertising & Graphic Design students aren’t just seen in the classroom. Examples, using software such as Adobe, can be found around campus. A collage of some works, depicting animals, mythical creatures, and nature, hangs inside the Virtual College Center. Students designed holiday cards, created images centered on themes such as “fantasy,” and designed promotional flyers and posters for businesses, organizations and events. Advertising & Graphic Design at the College falls under Computer and Information Technology Programs. At the commencement ceremonies in 2019, more than 15 students graduated from the program with an associate’s degree. The FTCC Advertising & Graphic Design Department shines with creativity One of the department’s students also received special recognition in June. Keyon Sakil-Slack won a $1,000 competition held by Blacksmith Publishing, a local book company serving the needs of America’s warriors, owned by Mike Blackburn. Keyon’s design was chosen in the company’s effort to find a new header for its updated website. Keyon came to FTCC through the High School Connections program and is a 2019 graduate of Pine Forest High School. Above, guests look at works of Advertising & Graphic Design students during Portfolio Night. The annual event marks the end of students’ time in the program as they prepare for graduation. The event has been held for more than 30 years. The event also allows students to market the brands under which they have created their works. Also displayed at Portfolio Night are examples of illustration and web design. The event usually draws more than 200 attendees.WWW.FAYTECHCC.EDU TROJAN SPORTSFTCC ANNUAL REPORT 55 A Trojan Baseball player gets ready to swing during one of the first games of the inaugural season at J.P. Riddle Stadium. Baseball, as well as women's softball and volleyball, kicked off its first year in 2019. N SPORTSTAKE ME OUT TO THE ball gameFTCC ANNUAL REPORT 57 In December 2018, the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners voted to gift J.P. Riddle Stadium to FTCC, passing ownership to the College. The men’s baseball teams of Fayetteville Technical Community College and Freedom Christian Academy in Fayetteville joined in utilizing the field and stadium over the year. FTCC acquiring J.P. Riddle Stadium timed perfectly with the inaugural season of Trojan Men’s Baseball. The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners voted in December 2018 to give the stadium to the College, ahead of the team’s spring 2019 season. At the time, the field was also used by Freedom Christian Academy and the Fayetteville SwampDogs. The baseball team’s first game in the stadium was met with much fanfare, which included dozens of fans wearing “Trojan” apparel – even the “foam finger” seen at major sporting events. Also, FTCC’s Trojan Mascot made an appearance running between bases and high-fiving excited spectators. FTCC President Dr. J. Larry Keen threw out the game’s first pitch before the Trojans took on Virginia’s Patrick Henry College to kick off the season. However, the Trojan baseball team faced adversity before its inaugural season even began. An 11th-hour coaching change resulted in Billy Gaskins taking the reins just days before the Trojans took to the field at J.P. Riddle Stadium. Despite the scramble, the Trojans got the program’s first on-field win nine games into the season, triumphing 14-8 at home over Fulton-Montgomery Community College on March 20. “The players were very responsive to being coached,” Gaskins said. “They were eager to learn and eager to work.” The Trojans picked up a trio of wins by forfeit from previously played games and tacked on a late-March win when they split a doubleheader with NCAA Division II Barton College’s junior varsity squad. While the team encountered in-game speed bumps, the players excelled in the classroom, including four who earned NJCAA All-Academic honors. Carmelo Crespo and Charles Jordan earned second team honors, each posting GPAs better than 3.80. Bruce Elmore and Tyler Glenn made third team with GPAs higher than 3.60. “They learned to compete, to go out there each day and get better at the college level,” Gaskins said. “And they learned how to carry themselves at this level, because we heard at a lot of places we went that we didn’t carry ourselves like a first-year program.” The J.P. Riddle Stadium and its field became the home of Trojan Men’s Baseball. The stadium was given to the College by the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners. This season, the FTCC Baseball Team mourned the loss of one of its very own. Jersey No. 8 hangs in the Trojan dugout at J.P. Riddle Stadium in memory of Christopher Anthony Zavala, who passed away Tuesday, January 29, 2019. Zavala was a beloved student and talented athlete who played for the Trojan baseball team in its inaugural season. It's been a big year ...Next >