“Where Are They Now” is a new column, created to give current students a chance to reconnect with their former classmates, teammates or friends and get a glimpse into the life of Milligan graduates after earning their diplomas and venturing beyond “Tennessee’s fair eastern mountains”.
The first piece in this column covers Isaac Wood, an English and humanities major who graduated from Milligan in 2023.
What was your time at Milligan like? What were some of your favorite memories, classes, and themes of your time here?
“I loved it. There’s something special about having eighty percent of your daily living within a few acres. Morning walks to class cleared my mind and set me up for classes that have shaped me for the rest of my life. My regular vocabulary still includes bits that professors and classmates did off the cuff (rise up Soggy Bottom Boys). Sophomore English and humanities lectures shook up my world in the best possible way, and discussions in them led by thoughtful teachers have built in me a foundation of what good work looks like. I learned that it involves showing up completely and really trying to care for people. That brings me to the best part of all of it.
I made really good friends. Those four years were chalk full of good times and getting through tough times. I’m so grateful for the friendships made in Derthick, around the caf tables, through music (the Adoration prayer service and Milligan open mic nights offer the best music in all of God’s green earth) and anywhere else.
And come on, Buffalo Mountain right there? It should be illegal.”
Where are you now? What are you up to and what did you do after you graduated?
“I’m living in Johnson City (Come on, Buffalo Mountain right there? It should be illegal.) with my wife Sydney. A lot of really good friends live nearby too, which has made the last couple of years a lovely entry into adulthood.
I’ve jumped around to a few jobs since graduating. I worked in the marketing department of Appalachia Service Project for a summer, which meant I got to travel around Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia interviewing people and writing a blog about it each week. It turned out that all that travel was pretty stressful, but I loved meeting the people, and it was a wonderful internship. ASP is great.
Following that, I was an AmeriCorps service member for a year at the McKinney Center in Jonesborough, TN. AmeriCorps is kind of like the PeaceCorps, but it’s a year long placement instead of several years. It also gives a living allowance and an education award that can be put towards loans or a future degree. Working at the McKinney Center was great. It was an elementary school for African American students during segregation, and about ten years ago it was reopened as an arts center. I helped set up for art shows and events, and I worked with people who care about building community with art, gatherings and stories. My favorite part of my job was a big oral history project. I got to interview 35 people about their experience living in Jonesborough. It was really interesting to learn about what motivates people to live in a place and hear Jonesborough residents give their perspective on how recent growth is changing the community. Plus, it forced me to learn how to cold call. I also wrote and produced a monthly narrative podcast. Each one focused on a theme and featured a story from a person’s (or people’s) life. It was a blast to hear people tell their stories while editing it into a 15-20 minute story. It also fulfilled my dream of editing audio on a MacBook, inspired, of course, by the opening scenes of “Pitch Perfect”.
For about six months, I was a NextGen Accelerator Fellow for Christianity Today. Basically, about 15 young artists and storytellers spent time learning about and discussing what it looks like to tell the stories of the church. A friend from church helped get my toe in the door, and it was an experience that grew me a lot and was a great time. It was encouraging to hear from all sorts of twenty somethings doing all sorts of work in all sorts of places. None of them had clear plans for their lives either, which was also encouraging.
A couple months ago, I started working at the Langston Centre in Johnson City. It was a high school for African American students in Johnson City when segregation was still in effect. In 2019, it opened up as a multicultural center. My main job there is to help produce their Community History 365 podcast. It will feature stories from Johnson City’s multicultural history. The first episode came out this February. It’s called Community History 365, and it’s on Apple and Spotify. To be honest, I’ve already been surprised at some of the stories I’ve heard since working there. Did you know there was a music festival at ETSU in 1947 that featured an orchestra of African American musicians? And that they were playing compositions from African American composers? And yes, you read that right. 1947. It’s been a great place to work. Adam Dickson is the Multicultural Manager, and he and the rest of the team are doing great work to connect people in the community of Johnson City.”
How did Milligan prepare you for your current situation and life after college?
“I still remember the terrible feeling of going into a class discussion being sure about what I thought, having a professor question everything I said and leaving humbled and confused. It has really set me up for life after college.
The first few years after Milligan, which is all I know so far, can be tough. Being in college is kind of like being an adult, except you don’t have to buy food every week or, harder, make food every day. Don’t be fooled, we’re not making home cooked meals every single day, but we do have to eat everyday, and the caf is not “free” anymore. I’ve had to start learning to be an adult. To be one hundred percent honest, learning how to feel out of control and confused is really helpful, because that doesn’t stop when you get a diploma. At least, it didn’t for me.
In my experience, Milligan did a great job of teaching me how to think about history and religion and life, rather than what to think. I’ll be honest with you, not a single person I’ve met since graduating has asked me to identify the “Venus of Willendorf”. Not one. It’s been a bit disappointing. But just about every single day, I talk and work with people. It takes humility and curiosity and empathy to learn more about them and do good work with them. Milligan has taught me to be curious about how the world works and to value people. No matter what job you have, you’ll be working with people, and you’ll be living in the world. I’ve been thankful Milligan taught me those two qualities.
Milligan also taught me the indispensable value of having good friends and mentors, which is a shorter way to say older, smarter friends, and that the commitment of loving someone multiplies the joy of the relationship exponentially.“
What advice do you have for Milligan undergraduates still in school, either underclassmen just getting started or upperclassmen getting ready to graduate?
“Good friends will point you in the right direction, and if you’re all up in your head they’ll remind you that you’re not that important. In the kindest way of course, usually by making you laugh. At the end of the day, I’m lucky enough to go home to the best person in the whole wide world. If you find someone like that and have the chance to live your days with them, that’s the chance of a lifetime. Don’t pass it up.
After all that, you’ll still need to pay your bills and get your car fixed. So far, forty hours of working hard each week has taken care of (most of) that first one. I don’t know how to fix a car, but I’ve become friends with people—my age and older—who know how to do that kind of thing. Having friends and loved ones who are kind and generous is a true gift. Don’t take it for granted if you have it. I’ve done this by going to a church with people I’ve become friends with, but however you do it, find a caring community and make friends with old people. They know a lot. I’ve had to learn how to ask for help even when I can’t offer much in return. It can be a terrible feeling, but it’s worth it for the friendship and because now I have an operational automobile.”
What are your plans for the future?
“I plan on sixty plus years of life with my wife, hanging out with good friends, trying a few different kinds of work, learning how to keep plants alive and build some stuff, hopefully finding day jobs, where I can keep writing and going to the Down Home more.”
Pic 1: Isaac Wood (photo by Brittany Secraw)
Pic 2: Isaac Wood with a dog (photo by Brittany Secraw)
by Sam Kyker
