Story by Lauren Beatty
Shemara Fontes was born in the U.S. but grew up in Cape Verde, where her dad was a Nazarene pastor. One summer, he attended the Church of the Nazarene’s General Assembly in the U.S. Wanting to share a bit of America with his family back home, he brought back shirts and other swag items from the different Nazarene schools, including a purple T-shirt from Olivet. When Shemara was 16, her family decided that she should finish her high school studies in the U.S., so she packed her bags and flew to Massachusetts to stay with an aunt and two cousins. She started her senior year a month late, so her guidance counselor quickly signed her up for standardized test dates and began asking her about college her preferences. “The only school I could think of was the ‘purple school,’” Shemara remembers. “So, I applied to Olivet.” The shirt from General Assembly had clearly made an impression. Shemara did consider other options for college, but Olivet ended up providing her with the best financial aid package. “I moved here by myself and knew I would need to support myself through college,” she explains. “So, it was important for me to find the best fit in every aspect.” The first time she ever stepped foot on Olivet’s campus was at freshman orientation. It was love at first sight. She arrived with all of her belongings, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to travel back and
forth to Massachusetts (or Cape Verde) multiple times before the start of the semester. Her plan was always to stay in the U.S. until she finished her degree. But, being 4,000 miles away from home with few known connections proved difficult when she realized that she couldn’t move into Parrott Hall until the official early arrival period. “God works in mysterious ways, because I didn’t initially think I had any family in Illinois,” she says. “Then my dad remembered that he had a half sister in Monee. My aunt took me in and has continued to provide me with a home away from home during breaks and holidays.” Shemara started her freshman year as a communications major but wasn’t initially sure in which area she wanted to specialize. The faculty and students within Olivet’s Department of Communication were supportive and encouraging, and Shemara quickly found her footing. She settled on majoring in multimedia communication with a concentration in radio and minors in French and leadership. “The whole goal of the department is to equip students to go do things,” she says. “All of the professors know the students by name and they are intentional about building community. When I had to write my professional communication speech, professor Patrick-Trippel had me rewrite my outline five times. But, each round of edits, she was super helpful and gracious in helping me succeed.” The Introduction to Broadcasting course with professor Brian Utter ’91 at Shine.FM particularly opened her eyes to interesting
career possibilities. Establishing a connection with professor Utter also opened the door for a job at the radio station. Through her job at Shine, she has worked as one of the on-air personalities for overnight hours and has done production work on sound bites and some Shine podcasts. As she is looking forward to graduation, Shemara is keeping her professional options open, but her ultimate dream is to produce audio content for a faith-based organization. While the pandemic halted her internship plans with World Mission Broadcast in Congo, Shemara is confident that regardless of travel restrictions, she will get to use broadcasting for ministry opportunities. Shemara’s time at Olivet has been full. In addition to working at Shine, she has worked with the Associated Student Council as a class representative and as an executive officer; participated in Proclamation Gospel Choir, the Food Recovery Network and Enactus; and served as a resident assistant for three years. “My life mindset is to always find new learning opportunities, whether that is building on something I already know or finding something new,” Shemara says, simply. “I thrive when I’m busy and my time here has been amazing. I felt so welcome right from the start. I wish I could stay forever, but I’m also so excited to discover what is next!”