The BAA asked this year’s Legacy Scholarship applicants to reflect on what it has meant to be part of a Baylor legacy family and to grow up surrounded by Baylor traditions. This week, we introduce Daniel Carr, a freshman from Flower Mound, TX, who expects to graduate in May 2019 with a major in International Business. In the part of his application where he talks about his Baylor Legacy family members, he listed his dad, Charles Carr ’90, who is an executive director in Ernst & Young’s Tax Services practice, and his brother Charlie, who is a junior at Baylor.
Some become a part of the Baylor legacy later in life. Others are born into it. Fortunately for me, I was born into it, and I have reaped the benefits. I never had to worry about where I wanted to go to school (I always felt that Baylor was my home), I learned the traditions and fight songs early, and I experienced the joy of being a Baylor Bear before officially receiving the title. Those experiences have been some of the best of my childhood.
One day I will never forget is Saturday, October 23 of 2010. My Dad and I drove to Waco for the homecoming game against the Kansas State Wildcats. While I was thrilled to be sitting only a few rows back from the field, giving me a perfect view of Robert Griffin III and the rest of the Baylor Bears during warm-ups, the moment that made that day particularly memorable occurred right as the skies opened up and released an instant deluge, almost as if God had dumped a bucket on the area. Water then continued to drain from the sky for another 30 minutes or so, while my Dad and I huddled with thousands of others under the bleachers hoping to stay as dry as possible. When the rain slowed and the field was open for play again, the Bears went on to play a great game and win over K-State by five.
Since that day, I have attended many Baylor football games, especially since 2013 when we bought season tickets for the first time. I can proudly say that I had the pleasure of watching Baylor go from being not so good “back in the day” to being an unstoppable force over the past several years thanks to the extraordinary leadership of Art Briles. First, there was the recruitment of RGIII, which marked the turning point. Then the Bears progressed under Nick Florence and thrived under Bryce Petty in Floyd Casey Stadium. Most recently, every one of the Bears stepped up for a wildly successful first year in McLane Stadium.
When the Bears are on the road, my family and I watch the game at home with good food, lots of laughs, and enough yelling at the TV to make William Wallace proud. Those traditions, among many others, have instilled an unmatched love for Baylor in my heart. Thankfully, the green and gold blood that runs in my family has brought us closer together and helped prepare me for what I hope to be a remarkable academic career at Baylor University. Sic ’em, Bears!
Editor’s Note: When asked how the $1,000 would impact Daniel’s Baylor Experience, his answer was compelling: To many, $1,000 may seem miniscule, but to me, it means approximately 103 hours that I can spend studying, building relationships on campus, and working to improve the community around me instead of standing behind a counter at work. That is not to say that I am ungrateful for the character-building experience that hard work brings, but I recognize that I need to dedicate as much time to my studies as possible. Ideally, I will still have spare time to dedicate to the community, since serving others is of as much importance to a well-rounded education as academic studies. I will require myself to make things work without this scholarship, but I am aware of how much time this scholarship can save me. While I will have to continue working through school, this scholarship would relieve a portion of my financial burden, allowing me to focus more on my academic success and less on the financial undertaking that accompanies a higher education. I am hungrier for success than a bear waking from hibernation is for food. I will invest as much effort into school at Baylor as I have here, if not more (since I will have to cut back on hours at work to sustain the extra class load).
The Baylor Alumni Association awarded scholarships to 54 Baylor legacy students for the 2015-16 school year. Our goal is to give out more scholarships with larger amounts to help these students and their families pay for a Baylor education, and we hope to award more scholarships for the Spring 2016 semester. If you’d like to make a donation, please go to this page. We will send a pair of Baylor BattleHands spirit gloves to anyone who donates $100 or more toward Legacy Scholarships (or renews their annual membership for $100 or more).
