International Student Brings New Perspective

12/14/06

BELTON - When Tatenda Tavaziva stands on the sidelines at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor football games, he does so with pride for his present and his past.

For his past and his present link him to the university.

His father, Timothy Tavaziva, graduated from UMHB and is now an associate pastor at the largest Baptist church in Zimbabwe. Mr. Tavaziva heard of UMHB from missionaries in Botswana, where he was also a missionary from his home country of Zimbabwe. He came to Central Texas to study with his wife and 4-month-old son Tatenda.

After he left, he wanted his son to return to the university in Texas.
"It was always his dream to see his son graduate from Mary Hardin-Baylor," Tatenda said.

Betty Sue Beebe, UMHB alumni development director, said she knew Mr. Tavaziva when he attended the university and First Baptist Church in Belton. Now, she knows his son.
"It's unusual for us to have children of international students to come," she said. "He's a young man that's liked by everyone. He fits into the culture on the campus."

Tatenda, now a second semester sophomore, is on his way to earning bachelor's degrees in accounting and business management. Before he's through at UMHB in 2009, he plans to earn a master's degree in accounting.

While Tatenda doesn't remember the university from the first time around, he's making his mark this time. It would be hard to miss him, especially at sporting events where his attire combines passion for the Crusaders and his home country.

For Tatenda, his outfit is toned down from what he would wear at Zimbabwean soccer games, where he would help lead chants in the stadium. It is one that gets attention on campus.
"Tatenda's his own person, for sure. He eats sleeps and breathes the Cru," said Bear Garza, campus missionary and Tatenda's friend. "At games, he goes nuts and people respond to that."

On Tatenda's head sits a hat made from the skin of a kudu and is decorated with purple and gold tape along with Zimbabwe and UMHB flags. Sunglasses, with the lenses removed, likewise are decorated with purple and gold. His pants have two UMHB flags attached onto them. His shoes are wrapped with purple and gold tape and are covered with UMHB stickers.
In one hand, he carries a UMHB flag that he runs with after every touchdown on the football field, and in the other he carries a shield. On his back is the Zimbabwean flag.

"It's so I never forget where I came from," he said about wearing his country's flag. "A lot of people who have gone overseas have forgotten their country's values and where they came from. I don't want to forget."

Although he knew of his father's dream, Tatenda didn't think it would be possible. He planned to make a career working at camps in Zimbabwe, and eventually work his way up to a camp director position.
Then one Saturday in January 2004 he returned home from a camp. "Dad said pack your bags you're going to Mary Hardin-Baylor on Thursday," he said.

When Tatenda arrived in Texas, it was without his luggage. After missing one of his numerous connecting flights, a domino effect ensued and for two weeks his bags - containing everything to last him five years - were lost. "I was praying, ‘God, am I supposed to be here?' I was flipping out," he said.
He also had a university tuition bill and no money to pay it. When his father attended, international students had scholarships to pay for their tuition. All of that, he said, taught him to trust in God. "At home, I trusted Mom for money, Dad for money for fuel, or friends for a place to stay and hang out," he said. "Coming here put me on the edge. It was symbolic, the lost bags and the $5,000 I had to pay."

God has continued to provide a way through scholarships, jobs and friends. At the end of semesters, he has warned friends he may not return because of a lack of funds.
"The last day before money is due, someone would say, ‘Here Tatenda, God said to give you $2,000' or I'd get a new job that pays more," he said. "God always comes through." He also has been the recipient of the Townsend Memorial Scholarship for two years.

God also has provided in smaller areas. Tatenda often would awake to find a bar of soap, a T-shirt or a new pair of shoes by his door, left by an anonymous donor. He's also learned about trusting God with his studies and serving others. "Back home, I concentrated on just school. I didn't do that great. I made Bs, Cs and Ds. It was all about me," he said.

At UMHB, he is sophomore class president, works three jobs and is on several club teams, as well as attending football and other sporting events in his purple and gold garb. "By God's grace he's still giving me a 4.0," he said. "I've just been willing to serve others. I don't think I got any cleverer or suddenly saw the light."

Garza said Tatenda has made an impact on the campus, almost since he started. "He's a good bridge, a liaison between believers and nonbelievers. He meets them where they are," he said. "He's a leader. If he has a vision, if he puts any effort into it at all, it's going to go through." UMHB students have embraced Tatenda as well. "It's been good to see the campus unite around him and be the family for him," Garza said.

Tatenda plans to take what he has learned in and out of the classroom when he returns to Zimbabwe. There, he wants to open a Christian camp, of which there are few in Zimbabwe, for the young to the old.
"Dad always wanted me to preach. Mom wanted me to be an accountant. I always wanted to have fun," he said with a laugh. "I think a camp covers that."