Hurst alumni host bedtime story event

Samantha Weber, Staff writer

On March 23, Mercyhurst University hosted a Bedtime Story Reading over Zoom. The special guest was Kristin (Peterson) Pierce, who graduated from Mercyhurst in 2008. Alumni were invited to bring their children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews to this history-making event. This was a great option to help the alumni connect again but also share it with their kids or young-er generations of potential future Lakers.

Director of Alumni Engagement, Lindsay Frank, talked about the children who joined the Zoom call. “Many of the children were all dressed in their pajamas, ready for bed, but excited to hear great bedtime stories,” Frank said. Pierce is the founder of Inner Compass Books and Inner Compass Academy. She is also an author of many children’s books. At this event guests heard Pierce read two of her books: “Mayva O’Meere, Creationeer” and “The Sweet Dreams Express.”

Frank talked about how this event was organized. “Alumni are always sharing their updates, career successes and news with us. This led me to find out all about Kristin Pierce, a 2008 grad-uate of Mercyhurst. I connected with Kristin to ask if she would be willing to host a reading of some of her stories and she was happy to do so.”

Pierce credits her inspiration for her book, “Mayva O’Meere, Creationeer” to a course she took here at Mercyhurst. She took an Art Appreciation course that left her fascinated with the talent that these artists have and how their work has impacted others. Pierce’s interest in art history led her to incorporate some of the famous pieces into her children’s book.

“Mayva O’Meere, Creationeer” contains 19 historic art references throughout the story and a guide in the back of the book to give children the opportunity to learn more about the art pieces mentioned, if they desire to.

Inner Compass Books’ mission is to create mindfully crafted children’s books that help children ignite their passions, think outside the box and create a life full of purpose, impact and fulfillment. The company also believes that all children have incredible gifts to bring to the world. If reading a book about a certain topic inspires someone to try something new, then it could be a life-changing experience for the child.

“We had a lot of great alumni who attended the event virtually over Zoom. It was so fun to see their children, our ‘little Lakers’ attending because usually our events are for alumni only which is obviously an older crowd,” Frank said when asked about the turnout for the event.

Hopefully in the future, when COVID clears up a little, there will be an opportunity for alumni to bring their little ones to an in-person event and be able to connect with other alumni a little more.