Another year is almost in the books, and Mercer University has plenty of photo memories to show for it. Here’s a look at our top nine social media photos of 2020 and the stories behind them.
1. Congrats to the Class of 2020 – Aug. 10
Mercerians love celebrating students and their achievements, so it’s no wonder our top two photos of the year were related to commencement. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed 2020 celebrations, but special planning and precautions allowed graduation ceremonies to be held in August instead. This photo was posted on social media after the ceremonies had wrapped up.
2. Hats off to the grads – Aug. 8
Amid COVID-19, Mercer’s 2020 commencement ceremonies looked a little different. This photo shows Macon campus graduates in socially-distanced seating on the floor of Hawkins Arena, just minutes before commencement began.
3. Welcome, Class of 2024 – Aug. 20
Every August, our newest Mercer students gather to spell out the letters “MU” for a class photo. That wasn’t possible with COVID-19 this year, so we improvised with a composite photo using individual pictures of members of the Class of 2024.
4. That’s our president – Feb. 17
For President’s Day, we posted two photos in honor of Mercer’s own Mr. President, William D. Underwood. As a continuation of our #FacultyFlashback series, the post included a recent photo of President Underwood with his dog, Cricket, as well as a photo of him from his college days in Oklahoma.
5. Opening days at Mercer – Aug. 14
Here you can see the excitement of Mercer’s opening days summed up in one photo. To allow for enhanced safety, Mercer students moved into campus housing over a three-day period this year instead of just one. But the typical buzz and energy were there all the same, because that’s what Bears do.
6. Bears Care Kits – July 8
Prior to the start of the fall semester, each student received a Bears Care kit with a Mercer cloth mask, hand sanitizer, thermometer, button pin, pledge card, sticker and information card. Boxes also were distributed to faculty and staff. This photo showed the items in the boxes and was accompanied by an unboxing video.
7. Holiday light show – Nov. 27
The annual Light More Homes Christmas Celebration benefiting Macon Area Habitat for Humanity relocated to Mercer Village this year. The light show, which debuted Nov. 20 and will run nightly until mid-January, features a canopy of 50,000 white icicle lights, a pedestrian arch tunnel, a snow machine, a digital nativity scene and a Christmas tree.
8. Floating into summer – June 22
We marked the start of summer with a photo and video of Toby in the most summery spot on our Macon campus — Plunkett Pool. Toby looks cool and relaxed in his sunglasses, Hawaiian shirt and swim trunks, but floating him safely required some logistical thinking. We attached clear fishing wire to the pool float to pull Toby across the water and positioned him using a rescue hook.
9. Hail to the king and queen – Oct. 31
The announcement of Homecoming king and queen proves to be one of our most popular posts every year, and 2020 was no exception. This year, Tommy Truong and Natalie Yaeger were crowned during halftime of Mercer’s only home football game of the fall.