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Running is an outlet for doctoral learner Debra Bartkowski, but last year she stepped up to the next level — the 250-mile level. Surviving the “3 Days at the Fair” ultra-marathon has sparked her drive to complete her degree. “My takeaway from all this is that you can do anything that you set your mind to,” she said.

Every year, we get a few heartwarming stories that make you shake your head when you realize what people do to make the world a better place for their families and their communities. GCU Today picked 10 from the last year that stood out in our minds. Here’s an opportunity to catch up on the ones you missed … or maybe enjoy them again.

Children often have a lot in common with their parents, but Sydney Teerink and Tori Triguero now have one more thing in common with their parents. Teerink and her mother, GCE employee Ra’Lene, as well as Triguero and her father, Dan, can all now call themselves 2019 GCU graduates.

One of the concluding events of Money Week featured a panel of longtime financial services professionals talking to students about the future of the industry, and their insights included interesting observations about the direction of personal banking. Students entering the profession can expect to see a movement toward helping educate consumers.

Katia Cheetany, didn’t let the language barrier stop her when she immigrated to the U.S. from Lebanon 26 years ago. Now she refuses to allow the obstacles that have come up throughout her doctoral journey keep her from furthering her education and achieving her goal. “From every professor I learn something. At the end of every class I walked out with something,” She said. “To me I feel like every single class gave me an opportunity to grow academically and personally.”

Saturday was a day of celebration as Grand Canyon University’s Alpha Chi chapter inducted 1,212 new members into the prestigious honors society. Only students within the top 10% of their graduating class in each of their individual colleges are eligible. “GCU does attract a lot of exceptional learners,” Honors College Associate Dean Breanna Naegeli said.

Assistant Professor Chuck Banaszewski primarily teaches the first class that doctoral learners take when they come into the program, and they can rest assured that they are being instructed who knows what he’s talking about. Banaszewski’s background is filled with scholarly presentations, and his goal is to give the learners a solid foundation as they prepare to begin their dissertation.

There were graduates from four different colleges at the Thursday evening ceremony of Fall Commencement, but their stories have several things in common — starting with perseverance. But it’s also gratifying to hear about the support of their families and the admiration of their children.

For Jamaica native and now North Carolina resident Garfield Hyman, getting his bachelor’s degree in Applied Management always has been about making his journey worthwhile. He said his GCU instructors helped him on his online journey: “I found support, making the experience a really good one.”

Kirk Cameron’s Fall Commencement keynote address underlines the importance of perseverance. The former “Growing Pains” star and now prominent Christian actor addressed GCU’s most recent group of graduates with congratulations and a powerful message of overcoming fear, fulfilling their mission and finishing the race. “This was really exciting,” Cameron said. “I was a little nervous, I’ve never done it before … I knew with all these Christian families, it was just really a special blessing to be part of this day that they’ll remember for their whole life.”