Terri Denham can be found on the campus of Campbellsville University in two roles this month.
She walked with her fellow graduates May 7 when she received her bachelor of liberal arts and sciences degree, and she will be back on the job as custodian of Stapp Hall women’s dormitory.
“I got to finish something I started,” Denham said. “I know it’s a new beginning with God.”
Her path to a college degree was not an easy one. For the past five years she has been an employee of Campbellsville University, but previously she had been a student at Campbellsville in the late 1990s until a serious illness forced her to stop her education.
Jeanette Parker, dean of the faculty and a professor of psychology, heard Denham had been a student, checked her transcript and discovered she had been only four classes short of graduation.
With Parker’s encouragement, Denham started classes online in August 2021 and finished two classes this semester to complete her degree.
Joining Terri Denham, second from right, second row, to congratulate her on her graduation from Campbellsville University were Dorothy Penick (mother), William Meredith (brother), Ceanna Denham (daughter), Addison Meredith (niece), Lexi Hutcherson (great-niece), Alex Hutcherson (nephew), Bodhi Hutcherson (great nephew), Tyler Thompson (Ceanna Denham’s boyfriend) and Amanda Meredith (sister-in-law). (Campbellsville University Photo by Gerard Flanagan)
“I was determined, and God brought me through,” Denham said. “It’s a great victory with God. That’s what it is.”
Denham has lived her entire life in Green County where she is very active in “The Least, The Last, The Lost Ministry.” The ministry provides people in need with food, clothing and furniture, but she said, “most importantly, it serves people by holding tent meetings to see souls saved.”
She said she enjoys working in Stapp Hall and getting to see God touch the lives of the young women who reside there. “Those girls loved me, and I loved those girls. It’s a deep love, a free love, so humbling. It’s good to go to work every day and you receive love.”
Her daughter, Ceanna Denham, also works at Campbellsville University, as secretary in the office of academic affairs.
At this month’s graduation celebration, it wasn’t just family cheering on Terri Durham, though. It was the entire Campbellsville family.
“Terri Dunham is an outstanding employee who makes us better every day,” said President Joseph Hopkins. “She does this through the integrity of her work ethic and her devotion to our students. Today, we are proud to claim her as graduate and alumna.”
Campbellsville University is a Christian university with Baptist heritage that offers 100 programs of study including doctoral, masters, bachelors, associate and certification programs.
Linda Waggener is a freelance writer in Campbellsville, Ky.