Greetings, Alumni, Friends, Families, and all supporters of Moravian University & Theological Seminary,
My name is Benitta Ngobeni. I graduated in May 2022 with a BA in accounting, and I am currently pursuing my MBA at Moravian. I’m often asked why I did not spread my wings and go to a different university for grad school. The generic answer I give is that I am part of the 4+1 program and can obtain my degree in a year. However, the real reason is even simpler: This is my home. The truth is, outside of Moravian, I have no home in this country. No house, no family, heck, not even a dog.
When I was 18 years old, I left the only home I had ever known, leaving behind my mother, father, and three brothers in South Africa as I journeyed to America to pursue higher education. When I was moving, I had one main fear: How am I going to do this alone? With no friends and no family, I had no idea how I was going to navigate this country.
Before I even stepped foot on Moravian’s campus, it was made clear to me that as long as I was here, and a part of this community, I would never be alone. That there would always be someone around, to hold my hand and light the way for me.
It started with Boris Kirov, former assistant director of global inclusion, picking me up from the airport in 2018 and helping me get situated with blankets and pillows so I could sleep because, at that moment, all I had was two suitcases of clothes and a heart full of dreams and fears.
It continued in 2019 with Anize Appel, Executive Director, Center for Global Education and Associate Dean for Study Abroad, encouraging me to stop hiding my light, but to let it shine. To allow my voice to be heard, not just to express my own thoughts and opinions, but to also be a voice for the voiceless. That’s how I found the confidence to lead, taking on roles such as Black Student Union President and later on, being a senior resident advisor and President of Omicron Delta Kappa Honors Society.
2020 arrived and changed the course of our entire lives. The world felt dark and I felt alone and scared. Everyone left campus and went back to their homes. The only problem was, I, and many other international students, had no home. It was then that I learned that not only do I have a home in Moravian, but a family that comes along with it. Alexis Kersten and other members of Housing and Res life stepped in for many students in need and allowed us to stay on campus. Professor Jane Berger, who was the interim Dean of Diversity Equity and Inclusion at the time, helped me get an internship that summer and made sure that I always had enough to eat. The darkness did not even have time to put its feet up before my Moravian family swooped in with a light so bright, that even my fears were blinded.
2021 came along, and along with it came my personal covid diagnosis. I didn’t even have my first sneeze before Nicole Lloyd, Chief Student Life Officer, stepped up and organized food and resources for me. Despite telling my mother that I am fine, she insisted on calling Jane Berger and asked her to be a mother to me at this time. Much like Nicole, Jane too did not hesitate to step in.
And finally, 2022 is here and I stand before you as a young, black, and African woman who graduated summa cum laude and will be taking on a full-time job at a big four public accounting firm in Houston. At no point on the Moravian journey did the odds seem stacked in my favor, however, I stand here because of each person who has taken me by the hand and walked gently beside me or gone ahead of me on the open road and beckoned me to follow them. I stand here because of the scholarships afforded to me and the generous donors that supported my journey, without even knowing my name or story. Simply put, you’ve changed my life. Thank you for all that you’ve done for me and will continue to do for students like me.
—Benitta Ngobeni ’22, G’23
