182 Years and Still Celebrating - University of the Sciences in ...

1UNIVERSITY OF THESCIENCES INPHILADELPHIAU NIVERSITY OF THESCIENCES INPHILADELPHIAUNIVERSITY OF THESCIENCES INPHILADELPHIAFont used for name:Avenir1 President Philip Gerbino withHonorary degree recipients (fromleft to right) Dr. J. Craig Venter,President Gerbino, Joseph R.Robinson, Roland Morris182 Years and Still Celebrating234Graduation is a time for family. Itis always a special occasion whenfamilies of former and currentUSP graduates come togetherduring Commencement. 2 BarbaraBonk ‘76 celebrated the graduationof her son, Thomas J. Bonk II‘03, and 3 Marcie D. Haviland ‘03enjoyed that her husband, RobertHaviland ‘02, was able to see herpresent the valedictorian speechat Commencement. 4 The Ortmanshad a chance to witness threegenerations of USP alumni in onefamily — Werner Ortmann ‘50(Grandfather), Melinda Ortman‘03, P.J. Ortmann ‘77 (Father).Off to the other sideof the world....By Martha M. JablowSonja Logan is a young womanwith a plan—a very long-rangeplan. It doesn’t involve a whitejacketcareer with a chain orindependent pharmacy like mostof her fellow 2003 USP graduates.Instead, Logan is sketchingan extensive blueprint for missionarywork in the mountains ofThailand. Not for a year or two,but as “a lifelong career.”Although she’s only 23,recently married, and the ink isbarely dry on her PharmD degree,Logan is already on her way towardher goal of serving humanity. Butshe’s not abandoning pharmacyaltogether. In fact, she will beworking for an Acme pharmacyfor the next two or three yearsbefore going abroad. She expectsthat her training in pharmacy andhealth will enhance her work withthe Hmong tribes in Thailand—butlet’s not get ahead of the story.Logan grew up in Phoenixville,PA, and became interested in scienceat Phoenixville Area HighSchool. When college decisiontime rolled around, she knew shewanted to go into science, butalso wanted to interact with people.She met a pharmacist at ahigh school career day whosparked her interest in pharmacy.“I knew it would offer a goodopportunity to study science andto work with people, especiallyolder people,” she recalls. “And Iknew that, by going into pharmacy,I’d be helping older peoplegenerally.” Through her church,she had volunteered with elderlypeople and felt a special rapportwith them.Logan chose USP because “Iliked the program. PhiladelphiaCollege of Pharmacy was wellknownaround the country. AndI could jump on the train onweekends and be home in aboutan hour.”During her first year at USP,she joined a small religious groupcalled “Agape” (from the Greekword for “love”). “The group is afellowship of believers, but it’sopen to everyone. We havesomething in common, and it’san alternative to fraternities andsororities—but no hazing!”Logan was also a member ofthe campus chapter of theNational Community PharmacyAssociation and of Rho Chi, thehonor society for fourth, fifthand sixth-year students whomaintain a 3.5 grade point average.Logan’s GPA was 3.7 whenshe was inducted. She alsoserved as student governmentrepresentative.How did she manage to earntop grades, work on weekends,and juggle extracurricular activitiesat school and at her church?“It comes down to good timemanagement,” she says, smiling.“I’m pretty organized.”“One of several things thatimpresses me about Sonja is thestrength of her faith,” says Dr.Daniel Hussar, Remington Professorof Pharmacy, who taughther in several courses. “She’s anexcellent student who’s choosingto give up what could be a highsalarylifestyle to serve individualswho don’t have comforts andprivileges. Her strong commitmentis extraordinary.”Her faith has always been alarge part of Logan’s life, but itwasn’t until her fifth year at USPthat “I knew I wanted to becomea missionary,” Logan explains.When she received informationabout becoming a missionary,Logan says she knew what shewanted to do.Michael Zeek, a 1998 graduateof the Philadelphia Bible College,also played a role. Logan met himat a summer camp counselortraining day. The couple marriedin April.“Mike had already decided tobecome a missionary and had visitedmissions in Mexico, HongKong, and Thailand. I knew Iwanted to go to Asia,” Logansays, “perhaps partly because mymom is Japanese.” The coupleexplored possibilities and eventuallysigned up with FellowshipInternational Missions, an umbrellaorganization that helps missionarieswith orientation, preparation,planning and endless paperwork.The cost of living in Thailandisn’t high and the couple will beliving modestly, but they hope toraise “100 percent support” for ayear before they go, with promisedpledges to carry them intothe future.As they’re raising financialsupport, they will continue towork here. “I need to pay off studentloans in the next fewyears,” Logan says, so she tookthe Acme pharmacy job.Logan expects to put herpharmacy training to work, too.“I hope to volunteer in a medicalclinic and help the doctors andnurses. They don’t have a lot ofprescriptions, except for somebasic things like penicillin. Peoplein Thailand are very much intonatural remedies, herbals,acupuncture, massage.” She tookan elective course at USP incomplementary therapies andcontinues to study in preparationfor going to Thailand.Logan knows that becoming amissionary isn’t a casual adventureor romantic fantasy. “You can’tgo into it lightly,” she says.6USP Bulletin7