With the recent death of Louis E. Ingelhart, former professor emeritus of Journalism and the comments left after his death, it's safe to say he was a man of character, integrity and passion.
Some students are striving towards the same characteristics at this very moment. It would be easy to be stuck in hibernation mode from Winter Break and be oblivious to the news, but Ingelhart's legacy presents a lesson to be learned. At the very least, he deserves our attention as students of Ball State University.
The characteristics he displayed often get overlooked today for the idea of having the newest cell phone, latest style or the most money. Sure, those are all nice material objects, but you can't take any of those with you when you die.
It's interesting to read about Ingelhart's works and the awards he received. The word "incredible" repeatedly entered my mind as I continued to learn about his life.
I think the reason the word incredible came up so many times can be attributed to the continuous honor shown to him through the words of others. The type of honor Ingelhart garnered didn't happen overnight, but through a life of relentless pursuit toward what he believed in.
Obviously, the characteristics he displayed are similar to what many of us are striving towards as students. However, it will take much more than a few years at Ball State to gain the honor and total respect Ingelhart achieved.
Perhaps the most forgotten aspects today in our interactions with others are being able to take care of one another with time we invest in each other. This wasn't the case for Ingelhart, as he generously contributed his own time to helping individuals better themselves.
If you have a passion to start a campus organization or club, question a policy, do well in continuing your education or anything, for that matter, I encourage you to attack it with relentless effort. We should learn from the passion Ingelhart displayed for the First Amendment.
Standing up for or challenging an idea can easily be lost nowadays to the fear of upsetting another individual, but all you have to do is look at Ingelhart's 86-year journey for encouragement.
The Daily News is one of the great triumphs Ingelhart left behind. It proves to be a prime example of one of the good things that can develop out of standing up for what you believe in and having passion for it.
Although maintaining your character, integrity and developing an undying passion is challenging, we can look at the life of Louis E. Ingelhart and be reminded that we too can conquer any obstacle that stands in our way of achieving what we set out to do if we care enough.
Write to Dan atdaladig@bsu.edu
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