At one point or another, doesn’t every child dream of being famous? A famous singer, a famous scientist, a famous politician. Often those in the limelight have some sort of skill or quality that makes them stand out in the crowd.
At Brigham Young University, many people have stood out over the years. Many leaders in the LDS Church, university presidents, university donors, excellent students. Were all of these people recognized in such a way as to have a building named after them on a campus that more than 29,000 students attend? Certainly not.
So what made those people, whose names are displayed on different campus buildings, so different? You might think that they all donated generous amounts of money, or they were at one time the president of the university or other characteristics such as these.
Most students probably recognize the names on the Ezra Taft Benson building, the Heber J. Grant building, the Spencer W. Kimball tower, or the Hinckley Alumni and Visitors Center. But what about the name Jesse Knight or Caroline Hemenway Harmon? Who were they?
Due to my recent interest and research about these amazing men and women, I found that not all of these amazing people were well known in their community or were leaders at BYU. Not all gave huge financial support or were part of the university faculty.
For example, Caroline Hemenway Harmon was not well known outside the 12 miles that surrounded her home. Widowed twice and the caretaker of fourteen children, her kindness and her example of sacrifice touched all those around her. She expected everyone to be productive and taught her children to work hard and to serve. They may never have had a lot of money to spend or give, but she knew that money wasn’t the only thing of value. She lived a full life, doing everything she thought her sister Grace might do in her place, had she not been called away.
Jesse Knight was a man who wasn’t always perfect, but he followed the spirit and in doing so became very wealthy. Not only was he wealthy, but he created many jobs for other people. He tried his best to make up for his mistakes and never considered what he had to be his own. He contributed land and funds to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and in so doing, helped build BYU into what it is today. He was never a prominent leader in the church, but the Lord used him elsewhere and his generosity and fidelity have been widely felt.
As human beings, we all want to be recognized and appreciated, but this week I learned that often those who simply do good, stand up for their values, and give of what they have, indeed have a bigger impact than perhaps they realize. Simply having blessings, talents, and riches doesn’t make us someone to be remembered. Rather, it’s what we do with our God-given blessings, talents, and riches that forever writes our names on the path to eternity.
