Farewell to Logos adviser Michael Mercer

By Janelle De Jesus

LOGOS EDITOR

If I’m being honest, I had no idea how to conclude this last edition of The Logos.

With finals and the overwhelming feeling of the last week of school, this column was the last thing on my mind. Then, I remembered I would be e-mailing this to my senior adviser, and suddenly the words fell into place.

Three years ago, I received an e-mail from Mr. Michael Mercer, who knew I was interested in journalism at the University of the Incarnate Word. That e-mail became the catalyst for my entire career here at UIW. I hereby declare this last column as a letter to Mr. Mercer.

Mr. Mercer is a unique, wise, kind, and incredibly dedicated individual. I was terrified when I first made the commitment to UIW, but he immediately made me feel at home. He was charming and witty, and had a million stories to tell about his history with journalism and how newspapers used to look like. He’d make a joke about the “olden days” and suddenly my worries were eased.

My second semester at UIW I began writing for The Logos under then-editors Justin Kraiza and Ruby Filoteo. They trained me and helped mold me into a young journalist under the direction of Mr. Mercer. Soon after Kraiza and Filoteo would go on to graduate and I was brought up as the official editor-in-chief for The Logos, an accomplishment I would not have been able to do without Mr. Mercer’s guidance and support.

Since then, Mr. Mercer has not only been my boss for the newspaper, but my academic adviser, professor, and also general-life-advice guy who listened to me talk about how small my town Castroville, Texas, is and how much I love Taylor Swift.

For those who don’t know why I’m writing a seemingly sad farewell letter, it’s because Mr. Mercer is retiring. After many years with UIW, he is moving on to the next chapter of his life. He’s seen hundreds of students in and out of the halls in his time here, and I’m incredibly thankful to have been one of them. I consider Mr. Mercer a huge part of my upbringing here, and I’m blessed to have considered him not only a professor, but someone to look up to.

So, Mr. Mercer, thank you. Thank you for the guidance and life lessons. Thank you for drilling Associated Press style rules into my head. Thank you for sending me an e-mail any time there was a Taylor Swift-related event in Texas no matter the distance. And thank you for seeing potential in me as a young journalist.

I will miss your witty jokes and classroom etiquette and I will carry your lessons in my writing for the rest of my life.

E-mail De Jesus at jidejesu@student.uiwtx.edu