HPU Hosts 35th Annual Rotary Thanksgiving Luncheon
High Point University hosted the 35th annual Rotary Thanksgiving luncheon on Nov. 22 at the Nido and Mariana Qubein Conference Center. Pictured is HPU President Nido Qubein as he welcomed Rotarians from across the state.
HIGH POINT, N.C., Nov. 25, 2024 – High Point University hosted the 35th annual Rotary Thanksgiving luncheon on Nov. 22 at the Nido and Mariana Qubein Arena and Conference Center.
As HPU President Nido Qubein welcomed Rotarians from across the state to campus, he recalled he started the annual Rotary Thanksgiving luncheon in 1989 after noticing that too many of his friends were focused more on turkey and dressing than expressing gratitude for the blessings in their lives.
“Thanksgiving is about the Pilgrims who came to this country and planted seeds in the ground and prayed to God almighty that someday those seeds would give harvest,” Qubein said. “At the very first harvest, they knelt on the ground and thanked God almighty for the harvest they received in the land in which they reside.”
Qubein introduced HPU Class of 2017 alumnus Connor McKemey, a motivational speaker, mentor and coach who openly shares his story of surviving life-threatening burns to most of his body when he was a teenager. He served as a manager for the HPU men’s lacrosse team before earning a spot on the roster as a senior in 2015.
“His life has been nothing less than treacherous, but he will remind you of the blessings you have in your life,” Qubein said.
McKemey shared the story he relates in his book, “Life Ignited: A Hopeful Journey, Sparked by Fire.” In a split second just days before Christmas in 2008, he went from being an active, athletic 13-year-old whose life revolved around school, sports and family to being engulfed in flames from a propane tank explosion in his Fort Mill, South Carolina, backyard. Passing out in the ambulance, he woke up three months later from a medically induced coma to discover that nearly 90 percent of his body had been burned. Defying the grim 1 percent chance of survival doctors gave him, the young teenager tapped into his inner strength to rebuild his life. From coming to grips with what happened — and his drastically changed appearance — to coping with the pain of rehabilitation and more than 100 surgeries, he faced adversity without losing sight of his dreams.
“Every single passing day, each year that goes by, I get the opportunity to share these stories,” McKemey said. “It is a thank you to so many others that allowed me to be in this position. I would never have gotten to where I am today without so many others. When we talk about Thanksgiving specifically, it’s giving thanks to one another for what we have in our lives. When we share that appreciation and gratitude and love for one another, it just continues to grow and pass on.”
McKemey discussed the elements needed to build a fire – heat, fuel and energy – as he advised the audience to appreciate their Thanksgiving by doing the following:
- Spend more time being grateful than hateful
- Appreciate the most precious gift people all have – life itself
- Believe in each other and themselves
Mary Mikels, a professional singer from Raleigh, North Carolina, who was born blind and partly hearing impaired, also entertained the audience with inspirational songs of gratitude.
“With all the challenges she had, Mary Mikels reminds us in this Thanksgiving season that when we whine, we have to remind ourselves that whining is the opposite of Thanksgiving,” Qubein said. “When we whine, that means we’re not thankful to God almighty for the breath of life.”