4 minute read
The School of Hard Work
By Heather Fairbanks
J.R. Emrich knew that if he wanted to go to Bethany Nazarene College, now SNU, he’d have to work for it. “My sophomore year, I started a roofing business: I’d go to classes in the morning, then leave and work in the afternoons. That’s how I paid for school. I had planned that I would go into some kind of business after college, never knowing that I would stay in the roofing business for 44 years.”
J.R. practically grew up on campus. His father, Bob Emrich, was a Nazarene pastor whose day job was as a janitor in Bresee, while his mother, June, served students as the financial aid director. “The college campus was my playground. I learned to swim in the Broadhurst Gym when I was six years old. I rode my bicycle down every sidewalk on campus. I explored every building.”
Do not fear failure. Failure is not final.
From the time he was a child, J.R. was a hard worker. He got his first job at age 10, had a paper route at 12, and took on a regular job at EMCO Building Supply at just 15.
“By 1970, I was hanging around Bresee Hall so much that Harper Cole offered me my first job, to go around the campus and pick up trash. He paid me 25 cents an hour, and I was limited to 10 hours a week. On Fridays, I would go to his office and he would pay me $2.50 out of his pocket.”
When J.R. and Susan, also the child of a minister, met in his junior year of college, they knew exactly the kind of person they wanted for a spouse. As she put it, “when we met, we had both already been through so much life.” They were introduced in the fall, J.R. proposed via a Valentine’s Day newspaper ad, and they married the next May! With a bustling business to run and a family to support, the couple stayed close to the Bethany area, diligently building their life together.
Now, after more than four decades of marriage, all the hard work has paid off. J.R.’s company, Reroof America Contractors, is thriving, and Susan found her creative outlet over the years through several small businesses and projects. Both volunteer their time, from SNU’s Board of Trustees and Foundation Board to their local church and the Salvation Army. J.R. also serves as the chair of a committee that oversees licensing for roofing companies throughout Oklahoma.
After forty-plus years in business, they have a straight-forward message for SNU students: “Don’t give up,” says Susan.
“Do not fear failure. Failure is not final,” agrees J.R. “Failure helps you become stronger, helps you become smarter, and helps you become better prepared for the next go-round. I learned a long time ago: good times don’t always last forever, but neither do the bad times.”
When asked “what does Character – Culture – Christ mean to you,” J.R. had a quick answer. “The phrases refining Character, creating Culture, serving Christ – those are instilled in you while you are attending SNU. Those values stick with you as you go through life. It’s a foundation that students can build on.” Susan confirms: “Character, Culture, Christ is what life is all about.”
As faithful donors to SNU for over two decades, it’s not surprising that the Emrichs’ natural perseverance carries through to how they invest in SNU students. “I’m all for it. I’ve always been about giving,” Susan says. “Once we get involved, we stay involved,” says J.R.
But what really compels them to give? The students.
J.R. shares plainly: “The main thing, what I love the most, is hearing the stories and testimonies of the students of how SNU has impacted their life, how their life has changed since they’ve been here, and how they’re looking forward to the future.
“That’s what motivates me to continue to give year after year. My giving is just small investments in the lives of people who are telling those stories and giving those testimonies.”
Join J.R. and Susan and invest in the Character – Culture – Christ testimonies of SNU students with your SNU Fund gift today! The SNU Fund provides crucial need and merit-based scholarships to SNU students. Also called "the annual fund," these gifts from alumni, parents, and friends cover student expenses in the year they are given. Monthly automatic giving is an easy way to have a powerful impact and provide steady, dependable support for students. Visit www.snu.edu/give to make your gift today.
