I can’t really say that I was close to Dean Lorraine. In fact, I can only recall having one real conversation with her. It was back in 2007, when I had decided that I did, after all, need my college degree. My problem at the time, however, was that my records from my previous school (CSB) had been awful, owing to the fact that my attitude towards schooling had been so different then. Awful would have been an understatement, truth be told. So I had gone through the motions of applying for this new school called Enderun, submitted my requirements, gone through the interview, and just hoped that I would be accepted. I was called for a second interview, and that was when I met Dean Lorraine. She asked me why I wanted to study hospitality. She asked me why only now. She asked me what made me decide on Enderun. But most important of all, she told me that she had looked through my CSB transcript, was put off by it, but refused to judge me until she had met me and talked to me. She told me that the numbers hardly gave any indication of what a person was like. That 10-minute conversation had affected me more profoundly than anyone could ever imagine. In that instant, my respect and admiration for Dean had grown, in that instant, I had resolved to do my very best in school, as well as everything else I had done, just because one person had believed that I was worth more than some numbers printed on a piece of paper.
I had been admitted into school. It was only then that I had learned more of who Dean Lorraine was. I learned of her credentials, her accomplishments, but most importantly, I learned of who she was to the students of Enderun. She inspired most, if not all of us. Each student had the same respect and admiration that I had for her. She was our mother-figure in school. To make it short and simple, everyone loved her. She was an inspiration to all. Her mere presence made people want to do good, to do the best they can, and all because we knew she believed in us, and none of us wanted to disappoint her. She was, for many of us, the true meaning of what being an educator meant.
I feel sorry for not having had the chance to talk to her again after that one time, apart from the usual greetings when we meet each other in the hallways. I’m sorry that I’d never be able to thank her for what she’s done for me. I consider myself lucky though, that I did meet her, and that she had done for me what she did. So thank you, Dean Lorraine, for believing, for trusting, for knowing, for watching and for teaching us. You will surely be missed.
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