Inspiring Others - David H...

10 - Town&Gown December 2006

Inspiring OthersBY SUSAN FIELD


These four show

that with big a heart,

anything is possible

Between Penn State students and people who call this part of Penn-sylvania home, finding those who make a difference in the community, those who help others, and those who inspire others, is, as the expression has it, “No problem!”

The following four people exemplify the best in this area who are mak-ing inspirational contributions to the local and world community.


Rohan MurphyWhen he’s on the wrestling mat, Rohan Murphy feels just like everyone

else. For the Penn State senior whose legs were amputated after birth, it’s refreshing to get attention for his athletic accomplishments instead of his disability.

“I’m still trying to make a name for myself instead of just being known as the kid without legs,” he says while sitting in the bleachers in the new Lorenzo Wrestling Complex in Rec Hall.

He is in his second season on Penn State’s wrestling team — after spending two years at the Altoona campus and redshirting his first wrestling season at University Park in fall 2004. Murphy turned heads when he showed up to practice for the first time that year, but says everyone was very accepting. Now his teammates are his closest friends, and he considers coach Troy Sunderland like a father. He says they appreciate him for who he is, and don’t pay atten-tion to his physical limitations, except when offering their help for things like grocery shopping or carrying his wheelchair up and down stairs.

“He is like everyone else — school, girlfriend problems, etc. He does not complain when the wheels on his chair look like they are on the threads, he just pushes a little harder,” says Teri Jordan, Penn State’s disability-rec-reation-programs coordinator. “He is a great inspiration to work with. He’s hard-working and never quits.”

Lately Murphy’s hard work has been paying off. Besides making a name for himself on the wrestling team, in May he finished third in the World Paralympic Powerlifting Championships in Korea — his first international event — with a lift of 281 pounds. He has been profiled in newspapers in State College, Pittsburgh, and New York. He has also appeared online for Sports Illustrated and ABC and on ESPN television. “It’s pretty cool getting all the attention, it makes me feel famous — like someone on the Penn State football team!” he adds with a wide smile that rarely leaves his face during the interview. He says after his story appeared on SI.com, he began getting lots of e-mails, some from disabled students from other schools. Someone even sent him a book proposal. “People think I’m Superman because I can wrestle without legs, but it’s really easy because only one of two things can happen — I either win or I lose. Life is more complicated than wrestling because different things happen every day and there are a lot of challenges,” says Murphy, who plans to start grad school at PSU next month.

He grew up facing many obstacles, but what he struggled with — almost more than anything — was finding an outlet for his love of sports. “When I found wrestling I was so happy, and felt so fortunate,” he says, his eyes glinting. “It’s my passion and it makes me happy. When I’m out there, I’m not disabled.”

“I’m still trying to make

a name for myself instead

of just being known as the

kid without legs.”

Wrestling coach Troy Sunderland with Murphy.


Dannah GreshOne e-mail changed Dannah Gresh’s life. Four years ago, she opened a mes-

sage from a Zambian education director, asking her to write an AIDS-education curriculum. Gresh said yes. She knew she was meant to do the project.

“Before the e-mail, everywhere I went, I’d see and hear things dealing with the problems in Africa. It was a sign,” says the State College native. She says she felt something unexplained stirring in her heart and prayed she’d figure out what she was meant to do. A year and a half later, the message appeared in her inbox. As a best-selling Christian author and co-founder of the organization Pure Freedom, she was experienced in writing educational works. She im-mediately began researching and studying the structure of other successful

“There’s no celebrity in it, no money in it, just the act of doing something to help somebody.”

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curriculums. The project came together quickly and received $11 million from the U.S. government. By April 2002, she was in Africa implementing the program through training seminars on AIDS and sex education to 30 African social workers, church workers, and teachers.

By educating these leaders and students, she hopes African people will spread their knowledge and help future generations — anything to make a difference in a country where 16 to 22 percent of the population is affected by the AIDS virus. “Sometimes in compounds, there are 50 funerals a day,” Gresh says. “To find someone who has both a mom and a dad alive is very rare.”

Yet there is hope. At this point approximately 15,000 government-school students have been exposed to Gresh’s curriculum. Last spring she and her husband Bob led a trip to the country with 29 other Centre County residents, including area school students and her own children, Lexi and Rob. Their goal was to micro-finance and build a pig and fish farm to fund the Pure Freedom Zambia Educational Program.

The Centre County groups’ eyes were opened to see firsthand that 80 percent of the country’s population lives in extreme poverty. Gresh describes trips to orphanages, in which it’s not uncommon for more than 200 orphans to be supervised by only two adults. The group spent time playing with the children and hugging them. Some orphans, she says, hadn’t been hugged in years. The Zambian children loved the attention, but it was heartbreaking for the Americans. They were sad they’d never see the children again and didn’t know what would happen to them — or if they’d even survive. The experiences touched the group, inspiring them to spread the word on help-ing Africans. Next summer Gresh will lead another adult community trip back to the country.

Through her mission work, she has found a new purpose. She says, “It’s the thing that fills me up the most. There’s no celebrity in it, no money in it, just the act of doing something to help somebody. The fact is that every single one of us can make a difference.”

Brenda Hartman Brenda Hartman is living her dream. Inspired by childhood teachers

at Park Forest Elementary, she grew up knowing she wanted to share her knowledge and enthusiasm with others. Now in her 11th year as a teacher at her former elementary school, she still enjoys her job every day.

“Kids are my favorite part of teaching,” she says sitting inside her classroom, which is filled with colorful posters and bulletin boards. “I love learning new things with them throughout the year, watching them progress. It’s very rewarding.”

Recently, Hartman was rewarded in another way. In September, she was presented with the American Star of Teaching Award from the

African orphans wear T-shirts donated by the Penn State Lady Lions.

Brenda Hartman explains a new project to her students.


U.S. Department of Education. The annual award is given to one teacher in each state who is innovative, has a record of improving student achievement, and makes a difference in students’ lives. She had been nominated by her principal, Donnan Stoicovy, and selected out of 4,400 nominees.

Often described by colleagues as “selfless,” Hart-man, after receiving the award, focused the atten-tion back on her colleagues. “Teaching is such a collaborative effort. It’s not like I come up with these great ideas on my own,” laughs Hartman, who lives in State College with her husband and children. “Other teachers will tell me I do such a great job but then I say to them, ‘Well, who do you think I learned from?’ ”

Graduating in 1995 with an education degree from Penn State, she began teaching at Park Forest with teacher Brian Peters assigned as her teaching men-tor. He says, “What I saw right away in Brenda was her learning capacity. She was eager to learn and try new things.” Peters, who is now principal of Easterly Parkway Elementary, adds, “She was always thinking about what would be best for the children.”

Hartman, who is teaching a multi-age class of third and fourth graders this year, says she treats the students as if they’re her own children.

“She was always thinking about what would be best for the children.”

Both Peters and colleague Gail Romig, who was once an intern under Hartman, say she is energetic and creative. “Brenda has the knack to take the most mundane of lessons and make it meaningful and exciting,” Peters says. Hartman writes some of the grade’s curriculum, including a unit about Pennsylvania history, and one on the solar system in which the children can choose their own research project from a list of five or six. She wants the students to have learning options. “When children have some say in how they are learning, it becomes very meaningful to them. Ownership, choice, and responsibility are powerful learning tools,” she says.

And her students aren’t the only ones benefiting from her innovation. “She’s a gem! I continue to learn from her on a daily basis,” Romig says. “Even though she no longer holds the official title of being my mentor, I will always look up to her.”


Rudy BurrussParaprofessional Rudy Burruss has been on many

teams in his lifetime — including the Harlem Globetrotters — but the one he likes the best is the Wild Dream Team (WDT) he works with on a daily basis.

Burruss has worked as a teaching assistant for the special-education department at State College South for the last six years, working with the WDT, a class of special-needs students who are taught independence, determination, and transitional life skills. “I’m happy coming to work every day because it’s so much fun to see the smiles on their faces,” he says. “My mother always told me, ‘You have to find a job that you want to get up for in the morning,’ and this is that job for me. I can’t think of a better position.”

He is so close with his class that he misses them when he’s away. “The other week I took two days

off to go home to New York, and I missed being at school. I had to call every day to talk to the class on speakerphone to see how they were doing,” he says.

On this day, the six-foot-six Burruss towers over the

students as he helps them finish a math lesson in their workbooks. But his height isn’t the only thing that makes him stand out — it’s obvious the students adore him. A redheaded boy named Jake clings to Burruss’ side, following him wherever he goes. He doesn’t talk, but Burruss seems to understand him. “He’s wonderful with the kids. He’s an incredibly talented, passionate person,” life-skills teacher Jenny Lee says. “The kids get him and he gets them.”

As he walks through the hallway, students take off their headphones to say hello to him, others wave, some give him high fives. Burruss knows them all by name. He says some people have called him “the mayor” since he knows everyone in the building. This may be due in part to his involvement in after-school activities like mini-Thon, which he emcees, and five years as a ninth-grade basketball coach. “He’s easy to talk to. He’s fun to be around, and cracks a lot of

jokes. We can relate to him more than other adults,” tenth-grader Joe Smith says.

Growing up in New York, Burruss never had a teacher take an active role in his life, encouraging him to accomplish his goals. He wants to be that teacher for his stu-dents. “Instead of tell-ing them ‘You can’t,’ I want to tell them ‘You can,’ ” he says. “I want

these kids to know there’s someone they can talk to, and I want to see them graduate. When they walk across that stage with that piece of paper in their hand, it’s a real joy for me.” n

Rudy Burruss (third from left) with his students from State College High South.

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