2021-College-Report

spotlight stories continued * Stories written by T.Cay Rowe ABRAHAM V I L LARREAL RE S I L I ENT STUDENT ABRAHAM VI LLARREAL Music JOEY KUYKENDAL L RE S I L I ENT ALUMN I JOEY KUYKENDALL Communication Studies ABRAHAM VILLARREAL’S life changed dramatically one night last summer – the victim of a hit-and-run driver on Interstate 35 – but he was back on campus for the spring semester – thanks to “loads of love, blessings and encouragement” from the Texas State community. Abe, now 21, spent almost seven weeks in area hospitals – 11 days of it in a coma – following the late-night car crash near New Braunfels. “A kind stranger drove up behind me, called 911 and stayed with me until emergency vehicles arrived,” he remembers. Because of COVID-19, his was a rather lonely rehabilitation. As his many broken bones healed, he had to learn to use his legs again, progressing to the point that he now can walk, with the help of a brace and a cane. “I’ll probably never get around like I used to, but I’ll do all right.” He used a piano to help him get dexterity back into his hands and fingers. The piano had become part of his life during his high school years in New Braunfels, where he was reared by his mom and dad along with three sisters, one of them his twin. He was a lifeguard at Schlitterbahn before graduating from Canyon High and starting at Texas State. Between classes here, he works at Chick-fil-A. He’s now a second-semester junior majoring in music education. Early in life, Abe developed a belief in the power of music, and nothing that has happened since has shaken that belief, which he wants to pass on to his future high school choir students. His own high school choir director reinforced that belief and “taught me that music can change the world.” “Music sends a message of love and kindness,” he says , “and if we had more kindness in the world, we’d have fewer problems.” He says he’d like to teach somewhere in Central Texas, but he’ll go wherever the opportunity leads him. “Wherever I am, I want to demonstrate to young people that they should be unapologetic about who they are and just be the best they can be. That’s been a critical guiding principle for me.” ■ Brain cancer was JOEY KUYKENDALL’S challenge. It showed up at the end of his sophomore year at Texas State. “One day I had perfect vision, and two weeks later I was almost blind,” he says. “I figured I needed glasses, but my eyes turned out not to be the problem. It was my brain.” That was 2015, the year he turned 21. After surgeries, three and a half months of intense chemotherapy and a month of radiation, he was back. Having missed a summer and a fall in school, he cautiously enrolled for eight hours, depending on cross- campus help, particularly from Communication Studies faculty, the residential hall where he lived, the Honors College, and Disability Services. Did the experience change him? “You bet. While I was in the hospital getting ready for brain surgery, I thought to myself ‘I didn’t go to Sewell Park all year!’” Type A Joey had hit the ground running as a freshman, packing his resume with classes and activities to look good to a future employer. “But I was missing out on the fun of college!” He didn’t back off much in his studies, though, graduating magna cum laude in 2018 and earning the Ralph Harrel Award as the top undergraduate in Communication Studies. Joey now works for Learfield IMG College, a company that manages branding, sponsorships and game-day promotions for 220 colleges and conferences across the country, including Texas State. He’s currently working with UT-San Antonio. Joey’s passion for sports had followed him to college. He’d played football at Champion High in Boerne, where he and his two siblings grew up. His dad is a Texas State computer science alum, and his mom runs Daisy Charters and Shuttles in San Antonio, a company founded by his grandmother that buses sports teams and military groups. His mom was his main caregiver during his treatment, but on campus it was the faculty-staff network. “I am so grateful for the one-on-one help they gave me and for encouraging me to focus on what I can control and face the rest with a positive attitude!” ■ 34 ■ C O L L E G E R E P O R T 2 0 2 1 ■ 35