On Dec. 13, former Crusader and current assistant football coach Wendell Brown returned to the classroom for his College Application and Essay Writing Workshop to build writing skills and life knowledge with the help of Dan Wetzel. Wetzel is an author and sports columnist for Yahoo! Sports.
“We came together and wanted to think about how we can help impact our young people, how we can help them lead the best possible lives,” Brown said. “You guys are in high school, and we want to ensure that we help you get to college and how we can make your transition to receiving those college scholarships opportunities as easy as possible.”
Brown’s goals are to make sure students know how to write essays for college and scholarship applications and help them get the future they deserve. Many students do not have the resources and networks to receive help and opportunities from an alumnus that was once in their position.
“All of my experiences and the things I have learned like life lessons I have learned molded me into who I am today," Brown said. "They groomed me, shaped me, and helped me be a better business person, father, son, author, and community servant. I am very humble and grateful for all my experiences."
As a football coach, Brown encourages the football team to further their knowledge of reading and writing. Varsity football player Daion Johnson attended Brown’s writing workshop.
“Something I got from his visit is everybody's story is different, some may go through things but not everybody's story is as immaculate as yours,” Johnson said.
Even though Brown was wrongfully accused and spent three years in a Chinese prison, he has a story to tell. He refuses to allow his former incarceration to hold him back and speaks about making better choices. It is the students’ choice on how they tell their story.
He ended his visit with some words of wisdom, “Love one another, spread love. A lot of people do not understand it is the simplest acts that show love. Just Dan Wetzel taking his time to come up here today, that is an act of love. Asking someone if they’re OK if you see them down is an act of love. Just genuinely caring for one another and wanting one another to be well is love.”
