Stories of Lee: International Women's Month - Erica Peerbolte

"Just because things have gone on forever does not mean they should continue." - Erica Peerbolte.

Meet Erica Peerbolte from Fredericksburg VA. She's a freshman studying Digital Media with an emphasis in Cinematic Arts.

How do you feel being a woman on Lee's campus?

Erica: I feel important being a woman on campus. I think that Lee has definitely done what they can to improve that and to make me feel comfortable. Sometimes, you can tell that there are a lot of men in authority due to old fashioned culture but I definitely feel it's getting better. I feel respected.

Do you think Lee should be an example to other places?

Erica: Not really because we are still working on getting better but I think we are doing what we can for right now. I think it's amazing that we have had a whole week of women chapel speakers. They wouldn't have done that before and that's so it's cool, but I don't think it is necessarily at the example stage right now.

Does being a woman on campus affect your daily campus life in any way?

Erica: I don't think so. I am very secure in who I am, as a person and a woman, I think they go together for me. So, it doesn't really affect how I feel on campus.

What women do you look up to in life or on campus?

Erica: In life, I look up to my grandmother. She is very important to me. She is one of my best friends and we call each other a lot. I like to spend nights at her house cause she lives really close to me. She has been able to show me how to be a STRONG WOMAN because she has been through a lot of things and remains true to herself. I really appreciate that about her personality. She used to be very afraid of who she was because of problems and trials she went through in her life, dealing with many different kinds of abuse. As she has gotten further away from that and as she has healed, she has become such a STRONG and confident character and it is really cool to see that. I appreciate it.

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Tell me one thing you want Guys to Hear from you considering what is going on in the world right now. Erica: I like who I am as a woman and I like the power I feel from that. l want men to know that they are still valued but their authority isn't better than ours. I don't want to be disrespectful to men, everyone deserves recognition and I think the old fashioned way of doing things is not always the best way. Just because things have gone on forever does not mean they should continue. I have not really run into too many problems at Lee specifically but that's just something I feel like all men should know. This is a very hard question!! What is favorite Bible verse or Quote? Erica: Romans 8:1 "There is therefore now, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." It's my favorite verse because, during a really rough trial in my life, I was dealing with a lot of shame at the time. I held on to it for a while. I was in an emotionally abusive relationship that was not good for me. I was thinking a lot of things were my fault when they were not. They were not very Christ Like things. So, when I went to church in the summer time, after the relationship, the pastor gave a sermon on SHAME, and how when we look back on our shame and look at the past, we are focusing on what doesn't matter anymore when we are redeemed in Christ Jesus. Like Jesus doesn't see that sin anymore. He brought up this verse, Romans 8:1, its very important to me because those words remind me that I BELONG TO JESUS CHRIST and that's my identity. The shame and the things that have had happened to me in the past don't DEFINE who I am and they don't make me DIRTY, Jesus makes me beautiful. We are messed up and flawed but we have JESUS to put our hope in.

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Thank you for Reading.

Chike Okwudiafor.