The Holmes Community College Ridgeland Campus held a graduation ceremony for the Massage Therapy students Dec. 12 in the McGowan Workforce Training Center.
The Massage Therapy Class of 2024 included Joshua Alvarado of Kosciusko, Shaela Beechem of Jackson, Joseph Frazier of Byram, Daniel Gardner of Richland, Destiny Todman of Byram and Ashaunti Woodard of Ridgeland. The program is led by instructor Liz McLain.
The ceremony began with a welcome from Ridgeland Campus Vice President Dr. Bronwyn Martin. Following her welcome, Todman, one of the massage therapy graduates, gave remarks on behalf of their class. Next, guest speaker Kwantrell Green addressed the graduates. Green is a motivational speaker, author and business professional with a background in education and community relations. He authored the book “Life Poker,” which draws parallels between life and poker to teach resilience and decision-making. Green shares insights on leadership, personal growth, overcoming adversity and successfully achieving goals.
“At any given point, ya’ll could’ve given up along that journey, but you kept moving, you kept coming each and every day and here you are today,” Green said. “I want to talk about my motivational brand, Life Poker. I talk about purpose, decision and story. Purpose is what your why is. Why do you wake up every morning? What causes you to keep going further and further in life? What causes you to come here each and every day? When you look at your why, it’s something that you wanted to do. You said, you know what, I want to better myself. Let’s talk about decisions. Decisions are all about you making that first step and moving forward. When we talk about decisions, I always say, there are three different types of people in this world. There’s those who make things happen, those who sit back and watch what happens and then there’s those who sit back and wonder what happens. You being here today, you decided you were going to make things happen.
“Also understand that life’s storms don’t discriminate,” Green said. “We all go through trials and tribulations; it’s what you do in the midst of those trials that matters. You’ve got to keep moving forward. From the story perspective, understand that you all have the right ingredients to tell the perfect success story. This is a part of your story right here today and moving forward. Decide what your perfect success story is going to be moving forward. I’m sure you’ve all heard the phrase, ‘People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.’ Understand that it’s always your season. It’s not that I’m waiting for this to come, or this to happen, it’s always your season. The problem is in how we prepare and how we adapt. If you go outside and it’s raining, you put on a raincoat and grab an umbrella. If it’s cold, you put on a coat. And moving forward in life you have to adapt, you have to be able to prepare, you have to understand that it’s always your season.
“With that being said, the journey of a thousand miles begins with one single step,” Green said. “You have to be able to remember every morning, this is just the start. You are now a graduate, the next step is to become a licensed massage therapist and the next step after that is to get a job. Then it’s all about what you put into it each and every day. Continue to invest in yourselves, each and every day. Once again, congratulations!”
After Green’s remarks, McLain shared a few words and presented Todman with a plaque for being named Massage Therapy Student of the Year. McLain was also excited to announce that the Massage Therapy graduates had a 100 percent pass rate on their for the national examination.
Career Technical Education Counselor Jovonna Parker then announced the graduates as McLain pinned each student on stage. Following the ceremony, graduates and guests enjoyed a reception catered by the Holmes Culinary Arts program in the lobby.
For more information about these programs, contact Career Technical Education Counselor Jovonna Parker at jparker@holmescc.edu or 601-601-3355.
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IN THIS PHOTO: Pictured is the Ridgeland Campus Massage Therapy Class of 2024. They are (left to right) Joshua Alvarado of Kosciusko, Ashaunti Woodard of Ridgeland, Daniel Gardner of Richland, Shaela Beechem of Jackson, Destiny Todman of Byram and Joseph Frazier of Byram, along with Instructor Liz McLain.
