Carpe That Diem!
Regent University School of Law (LAW) alumni seize every opportunity they can to give back to their school.
When Regent’s Office of Alumni Relations & Special Events initiated the “Carpe Diem” challenge last fall, a fundraising initiative that invited classes of alumni to donate the most money to their school — it’s no surprise that the results were notable.
So notable, in fact, that Regent’s Law Alumni Board gathered the winning classes together for a special luncheon honoring the success of the campaign on Friday, September 21.
The luncheon welcomed class members graduating in the years 1987-89, 1990 and 2009. Members of these classes raised nearly $170,000 in the school’s Carpe Diem initiative from November to December 2017.
Keynoting the luncheon was Regent LAW alumna Farnaz Thompson* ’07, associate university counsel of the University of Virginia and president-elect of the Virginia State Bar Young Lawyers Conference Board of Governors.
Thompson told guests of the luncheon that those who “seize the day” are “seizing a Kairos moment” — an “invitation from heaven to join God’s work.” According to Thompson, there are three “Kairos moments” that all LAW alumni experience:
“First, today is a ‘Kairos moment’ that we share because you seized a divine moment to give,” said Thompson.
The second, she explained, came when she and her fellow alumni chose to attend Regent University School of Law. Thompson shared that she did not grow up in a Christian household; she became a “believer” as a student at the University of California at Berkeley after prayers with a friend left her with a “sense of unexplained peace.”
Through her faith journey and a desire to study law to “make a difference,” she began praying about what law school she should attend.
She was prompted by two important mentors — an attorney from southern California who ministered to Thompson in a small group of college students, as well as her childhood piano teacher — both encouraging her to attend Regent LAW.
Thompson accepted the call and made the choice that would change her life entirely.
“I felt convicted that I needed to be at Regent University,” said Thompson. “Two weeks before law school started … I moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia, and attending Regent Law is one of the best decisions I made. We all have such amazing stories of how God called us here.”
The third “Kairos moment,” Thompson shared, occurs when God challenges His followers to do something in the profession that doesn’t make sense to the rest of the world. This happened for Thompson when she was working as a judicial claw clerk for the late Honorable Leroy Rountree Hassell, Senior, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia and former Jurist-in-Residence at Regent LAW.
Thompson felt a “sense of urgency” to write a resolution commending Chief Justice Hassell for his faith. Though, she explained, this was an usual thing to do for someone while they still hold their professional position, she took hold of the “Kairos moment,” completed the resolution and mailed it to his home.
One week later, Chief Justice Hassell died; his wife later relayed to Thompson that they had received the resolution the day of his death, and it was read to him during his final hours.
Thompson shared that Regent LAW is where she learned to “seize Kairos moments by faith.”
“Seizing Kairos moments takes faith, and Regent Law was founded on and succeeds by faith,” said Thompson. “By faith, you seized the day and contributed to the good work that God has started through this law school. God will be faithful to finish the good work that He started. The question is: will we have the faith to seize the Kairos moment and join Him in completing His work at Regent Law?”
The Carpe Diem Challenge for this year will begin November 12, 2018, and run through the end of the year.
*Ms. Thompson is appearing in her personal capacity only and does not represent the opinions or reflect the views of the University of Virginia or the Virginia Attorney General.