Whose family has 17 sets of twins, a father who is the same age as his children and a mother who is a senior in college? Mine does, and I’m proud to be apart of this exceptional group. No, this isn’t a joke nor is it some twisted reality TV show, what I’m talking about is FLEX, the Freshman Leadership Experience at Virginia Tech.

Now I know what you’re thinking, “So it’s a messed up family?” No. “So it’s a lifting club or a cycling group?” No, although I’d consider us pretty strong. We’re normal people (to an extent) who were brought together for their character and passion for leadership.

FLEX is a program housed in the Student Government Association for about 30 freshmen who prove through an application process that they have leadership skills and potential to live out Ut Prosim on and off campus. Every year, a new Director and Assistant Director are chosen to lead the program, so each year the program is unique. This year, our Directors were the phenomenal Paige Waltz and incredible Chris Gilson. Their vision for the program was to get us to find our passion at Tech, whether it be helping run Big Event or Relay for Life or becoming a part of the YMCA or Student Alumni Associates. A lot of us came into Virginia Tech not knowing what we wanted to do or how we wanted to make a difference, but through our weekly meetings and presentations by various people, I would say at least half of us were guided into something we’re passionate about.

Chris and Paige also wanted us to learn that being a leader means we have to lead ourselves first, so we had “Fireside Chats” (aka deep talks about our feelings in a non-twelve-year-old-girl way) to help us discuss a multitude of things, ranging from time management to our short time living here on earth. Not only did we learn about ourselves, but we learned about each other, and that was one of my favorite parts of the whole program.

So how was this year for me in FLEX? It was downright incredible. I knew going into it that it was only a one year program, so I made FLEX my priority and milked it for all it could possibly be worth, and am I sure glad I did. Some of my absolute favorite parts of FLEX were meeting, getting to know, and becoming fantastic friends with so many amazing people. At first, I felt like the shy girl because we had people like the lovely Joe who were super comfortable with first interactions while I just immediately resorted to “Hi, I’m Elizabeth, my best friend is a cow.” Everyone just seemed so much cooler than me at first, and I didn’t think I deserved to be there. However, there definitely was a connection for all of us at the first meeting. This group of people had the least amount of drama that I’ve ever seen in a group, especially in one as big as ours. The maturity and character of each of the FLEXers in the Class of 2017 is unfathomable and I appreciated it so very much this year.

Another great part of FLEX was the people I’ve gotten to meet outside of our group and experiences we’ve had. Like I said, we had tons of people come present to us about opportunities on campus and I learned an immense amount about VT. I’ve grown to love Tech so much more because of FLEX and have a sincere appreciation for all of the groups that make us the university that we are. I got to meet another fabulous 30+ mentors for all of us, and they all are people who are active on campus. Getting to know those mentors has inspired me to live out my 4 years in service through our motto Ut Prosim. We’ve gotten involved in Relay for Life, Big Event, other smaller service projects, the Sustainable Community Dinners, and of course SGA events. Our retreats were two of my favorite events of freshman year. Getting so involved was a superb start of my college career.

One of the best parts about FLEX is what I learned about myself. Freshman year of college is a time where everyone changes, figures out what his/her priorities are, and becomes who he/she really is. Yes, that would’ve happened without FLEX, but our discussions helped me learn about learning about myself. I learned about who I was and who I was changing into, and that was something that I’ll forever be grateful for.

I know this might sound like an ordinary program, and let me tell you that it certainly is not. It gives freshmen the chance to grow into leaders while making connections with people all over campus and making some of their best friends. We honestly are a “flamily” and always will be. I’ve never felt more welcome in a group than I do in my FLEX class. Paige and Chris did an unbelievable job and are two of the best people in the world I’ve ever known. I want to be more like them as they live their lives in service to others while being hilarious and brilliant, too. And those FLEXers- wow, I don’t even know where to start with them. They’re everything I want in friends. They’re encouraging yet challenging, supportive yet independent, hilarious yet professional, and dedicated yet easy-going. They’re appreciative and always there for me no matter what, and I only hope that I can do the same for all 33 of them.

When I was presented with the “Most Outstanding FLEXer of the Year” award at the SGA Banquet, I immediately thought of so many people who deserved that award for being such a wonderful part of the program. I am incredibly grateful for being honored, but I believe that every single FLEXer deserves an award. Every single one of them has helped me realize who I want to become and each of them will be my life-long friend.

To my FLEXERs– thank you for everything- the laughs, memories, meetings, inspirational quotes, creative ideas, pep talks, the softball games (or lack thereof), deep talks, teaching me your swashbuckling ways, goofy pictures, GroupMe randomness, appreciating my cow obsession, flinners and flove.

To Chris and Paige- I think I’ve said it to you about 75 times, but thank you from the bottom of my heart. And thank you for the award and the cow jokes.

To my mentors, Emily and Alex, and my twin, Irfan– It’s been a blast in our flamily. My birthday present will stay with me forever, just like Alex’s weird Facebook posts. I wouldn’t have rather been in any other flamily but ours.

To Drew and Martha– I couldn’t be happier that FLEX is in your hands next year. You’re an absolutely perfect pair and I can’t wait to see what wonderful freshmen enter the flamily next year.

Hopefully you understand why I post so many pictures with “FL” captions or why I’m so in love with this program. It’s absolutely perfect and I’m so grateful to have been one of the 34 chosen to be in the FLEX Class of 2017.

This is not “goodbye,” because as Alyssa and Chris know, I don’t do “goodbyes” well. Leaving you all at the picnic back in Blacksburg made me an emotional wreck, especially after such a hard 2 weeks, but I’m eternally grateful for the love you’ve given me this year and I can’t wait to continue our Tech experience together for the next 3 years. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

“FLinner

FLamily

FLove

FLEX

#LiveYourDash”