Travel Challenges Create Community

by Ava Swearingen, student writer

Fall break is often a whirlwind for Harding students. We get a Friday off from classes in early October, and most of us ambitiously try to cram in a trip during the long weekend. This year, I decided to go visit a good friend of mine in Denver, Colorado. She was once my roommate, and I was excited to see her again in a city where the air felt crisp. It would be a welcome contrast to the hot and humid Searcy air I was leaving behind. I left campus on Thursday night and planned to be back by Sunday night. However, after a fun-filled weekend, travel did not go as planned.

The first flight delay came due to the arriving airplane running late. When the plane got to Denver, there was a second delay due to maintenance issues. Next came a change of aircraft. However, because the new plane was bigger than the one my flight was initially supposed to be on, we sat on the tarmac for around an hour while our flight attendants tried to figure out how to move people around on the plane to make sure the weight was evenly distributed. I assumed we would be ready to take off after that was handled, but then we were informed of yet another change of plans. Our flight attendants had timed out. With a general air of frustration among the passengers, we waited for backup flight attendants to arrive. Almost immediately after the new crew joined us, an announcement came over the speakers: Our flight had been delayed until 6 a.m. the next morning. At this point, it was 9 p.m., and I had been at the airport for roughly seven hours. Needless to say, I wasn’t in the best mood. However, God provided an opportunity for light in the darkness, as he always does. 

I am a member of Phi Kappa Delta social club, and through that group I met Danielle Nikolai. She and I had spoken earlier in the week, and I knew we would be on the same flight back to Arkansas because she and her family had been visiting one of her sisters in Denver the same weekend. During the maintenance delay, I sat with Danielle, her sister, Amanda (who is also a Harding student), their older sister, Emily, and their parents, Paul and Paula. When I heard we would be stuck in Denver overnight, I found the Nikolais, and they quickly offered to take me in for the night while we figured out next steps. This kindness was a blessing enough on its own, but then we ran into more students from Harding who had been on the same flight. Kate Hoopes and Kiersten Healey are sisters and both in their final year at Harding. They had traveled to Denver for the weekend with Kiersten’s husband to visit the girls’ grandparents. They had met Danielle and Amanda one time briefly during last year’s club week. We also met up with Brooklyn Ware, who is a freshman at Harding this year. Brooklyn had recognized Amanda from club mixers but had only briefly spoken to her when they had first arrived in Denver Thursday night. I had never met most of these people before, and suddenly we were navigating this situation together because of our Harding connections.

We spent two more hours in the airport together negotiating hotel vouchers and then waiting for a shuttle to our hotel for the night. During this time, we all got to know each other better. Even Danielle and I, who had a preexisting relationship, were able to grow closer while sitting on the nasty airport floor. 

When we made it to the hotel, we decided to split our group into two rooms rather than take our individual vouchers. It would take less time to check in, and we already felt comfortable together as a group. My room used our food vouchers to order too much McDonald’s, and we ate chicken nuggets and fries in bed while watching Shark Tank. After a few hours of sleep, we made our way back to the airport for our new flight time. Luckily, all went well, and we made it back to Little Rock on schedule. 

Goodbyes were long in Little Rock, even though most of us were heading back to the same campus. Regardless, we lingered a bit on our way out of the airport, and I got big hugs from the Nikolai girls’ parents and well wishes for the rest of the semester.

Later, the girls and I realized the deep impact of the University community. A daunting challenge turned into a confidence that we could rely on each other because we’re all Harding family. There’s a level of trust in that name. It says that we share a connection in Christ and that we are capable of working together without knowing each other at all. To know the Harding community is to know a friend anywhere and to keep that friend for a lifetime.