Senior Spotlights

Josh Gaede is a legacy Tabor student who heard about Tabor from his parents. Their encouragement and his qualification for the PLP Fellows Scholarship is what brought him to Tabor.

Over his four years at Tabor, he has done cross country, tennis and theater; been an RA; taken piano lessons; and been involved in AED club. He is triple majoring in biomedicine, biology and psychology.

As he prepares to move on from Tabor, he found that the relationships with faculty members and fellow students that he built here are some of his best experiences from college.

“Relationships (are) the absolute best part of Tabor,” Gaede said. “Tabor is a place where you will make friends for the rest of your life.”

Josh plans to take a gap year after college working as a medical assistant, after which he will move on to more schooling to become a doctor of osteopathic medicine. He eventually plans to become a family physician for a rural town.

Will Boney is from Frisco, Texas, and was recruited to play soccer at Tabor, but he did not realize the impact that Tabor would have on him.

As a business administration major with a communications minor, Boney arrived at Tabor looking forward to building relationships with people both inside and outside of his sport.

He soon got involved on campus in activities including DECA, CHUMS and Student Senate, as well as being an RA and senior class president.

In the classroom, Boney worked his way onto the dean’s list multiple times. On the field, he played an integral role in the soccer team’s turnaround, as they went from 2-13-1 in 2020 to 12-8-1 in 2021, finishing second in the KCAC and qualifying for the NAIA national tournament.

“Outside of soccer, the overall experience with the community here has been amazing,” Boney said.

After graduation, Boney plans to either move to Oklahoma City, Okla., or Nashville, Tenn., and pursue a career in marketing or sales.

Taylor Burns has been a light on Tabor’s campus since she arrived in the fall of 2020. She came to Tabor on a volleyball scholarship, but she instantly got involved with other activities including SOCA and athletic training.

She is majoring in health and human performance with an emphasis in strength and conditioning. Burns earned third team All-Conference both seasons as a Bluejay and has made the dean’s list three semesters in a row.

“Since coming to Tabor, I have learned to let go of the things I cannot control and let life take me down the path that I am supposed to go,” said Burns.

She has received a job as the assistant volleyball coach at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colo. Burns, who graduated from Northeastern before coming to Tabor, said she is excited to return back to the program.

JOSH GAEDE

by Sam Buller

WILL BONEY

by Cody Meyer

TAYLOR BURNS

by Kenna Brandes

Although the chance to play volleyball brought senior Haylee Barta to Tabor, she is graduating with so much more.

Barta said she felt it was easy to connect with people as soon as she got on campus because of her team, but she has also made many friends outside of her team.

A highlight of her time at Tabor has been meeting with her mentor, Amy Ratzlaff, and committing her life to Christ during their time together.

Barta has accepted a job teaching elementary school in Syracuse, Kan., that she will begin in the fall of 2022.

“I grew a lot in my time here,” said Barta. “I learned that I can have my own relationship with God, and it doesn’t have to look like everybody else’s.”

Each year, Tabor graduates stupendous students, with this year being no different. Kole Long, a member of the football team at Tabor, is one of many that will go on to achieve great things.

Long is double majoring in bio-med and bio-chem, along with a minor in mathematics. He will attend the University of Oklahoma next fall as a member of their bio-med doctorate program.

“My plan is to focus on the research aspect, possibly with the military, or work for a government lab,” Long said.

Long came to Tabor from Mulvane, Kan., roughly an hour away from Tabor. At Tabor, he has grown and made many memories along the way.

“My time at Tabor has been good,” Long said. “I spent a lot of time with football and school doing a double major and a minor, so I didn’t have much free time but I spent it all with friends.”

“Send me” from Isaiah 6:8 were the two words Laney Swink needed to hear to come to Tabor. Swink, a senior from Fort Gibson, Okla., will graduate in May with a double major in exercise science and psychology and a minor in biology.

During her time at Tabor, she has enjoyed being a part of the women’s basketball team, creating lifelong friendships, and building a stronger relationship with Christ.

“If I wouldn’t (have) come here, I wouldn’t be (as) close with my relationship with Him than where I am now,” said Swink.

Prof. Jim Paulus and Sheryl Richert are two of the personnel at Tabor who have helped shape the person she is today, both academically and spiritually.

After graduation, Swink will pursue graduate school at Langston University for a degree in physical therapy.

Abigail Sechrist is a double major in psychology and ministry with minors in social work and Bible, in addition to being on the track and cross country teams.

She received the Hiebert Student of The Year award in her sophomore year and was Tabor’s female Champion of Character as a junior.

Last year, Sechrist was a NAIA national qualifier in cross country and earned AllConference in the steeplechase. This year, she made All-Conference in the indoor 5K run.

Her goal is to serve as a mentor or counselor for young girls, specifically those in the foster-care system.

At Tabor, Sechrist said the most important thing she gained was the experience of living in a community.

“At Tabor, I really learned how to live in community, the importance of having adult relationships and not avoiding conflict but working through it,” Sechrist said.

HAYLEE BARTA

by Millie Sechrist

KOLE LONG

by Ethan Barnes

ABIGAIL SECHRIST

by Kylie Davis

LANEY SWINK

by Mei Kirchhoff 11