25 years later, two former college roommates reconnect when their daughters become roommates at GU
Published: March 29, 2022
“I am still in awe by it, in awe and wonder of the power of prayer.”
Kelli Pryor MS ’20 is still overcome with emotion even months after she found out her daughter was paired up as a roommate at Greenville University with the daughter of Kelli’s long-lost friend and former college roommate. That may be a slightly confusing sentence to unravel when it’s first read or heard, but it’s obvious to Kelli that God was planning out all the details for this reunion for years.
“It’s a testimony about hope, about faith, about the power of prayer,” Kelli says. “Without us even knowing how this all came into existence, [that’s] God, only He can orchestrate something like this.”
Years in the making
Kelli, GU’s coordinator of Career Services, and her onetime roommate at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE), Dana Lawson, hadn’t seen each other or talked in 25 years. Immersing themselves in jobs and families, they simply lost touch.
As Kelli’s youngest daughter Gretta prepared to head to GU in the fall of 2021, Kelli recalled her own college experiences, and says her old roommate Dana was on her mind around that time as she prayed for Gretta’s future roommate.
“I have been praying for years for my daughters (Sadie is a junior at GU), just like a mother does for everything—for their experience, their healing, their opportunities, their choices, their life with Jesus, where they’re going to school, their friends, their spouses,” Kelli says. “I have been praying for Gretta’s transition to college and that both my girls be surrounded with kind and caring people and mentors.”
Kelli shared this with her colleague, GU Student Services and Housing Coordinator Missy Durbin, who pairs roommates at GU. As Kelli left work one day, Missy told her she found a roommate for Gretta.
“I just had this peace when I left,” Kelli remembers.
The pieces begin falling into place
Over the next few weeks, Gretta connected with her roommate, Angela, and the two texted back and forth. The relationship between their moms gradually emerged.
First, Angela’s mom Dana learned through one of the admissions counselors that, not only did her old roommate Kelli work at GU, but their daughters were both freshmen. Next, she found out Kelli’s daughter’s name was Gretta and, sure enough, that was also the name of Angela’s roommate. Angela shared the news with Gretta in a text.
“When I put two and two together, I immediately called my mom,” Gretta says. “Guess what! You’re never going to believe this. Your old college roommate’s daughter is now going to be my roommate!”
Kelli’s daughter Gretta, Dana’s daughter Angela, and Kelli’s daughter Sadie (a junior at GU). Kelli says all three are now friends and the girls enjoy cheering on Gretta who plays on the GU women’s basketball team.
Dana and Kelli reconnected over the phone around that time, then saw each other in person on move-in day for their daughters. Kelli says that first phone conversation felt as if they had just talked the week before and picked up right where they left off.
“We are truly connected spiritually, and I am grateful to be reconnected with Dana as a friend, GU mom, and prayer partner,” Kelli says. “She is an incredible woman of God and I am humbled by His genuine care for each of us and His answers to so many prayers. This phone conversation was filled with so much joy and tears! We continuously kept sharing how good this was to reconnect and how unbelievable this was with all of the dots connecting for our daughters, us, and our families.”
The Greenville connection
While Dana did not attend GU, a connection began years earlier. She and her husband played in the Greenville Municipal Band and became friends with a GU (then Greenville College) music professor. Dana adds that they also played in a band as part of the College’s 100-year anniversary celebration.
“It was an incredible experience to reflect back thinking we were in the same gymnasium years ago helping the school celebrate, and then, however many years later, we’re back, participating in our daughter’s freshman orientation,” Dana says.
Dana shared that she always liked the idea of her daughter Angela attending GU because of the small classes and learning experiences. Angela remembers traveling with her parents through campus on the way home to Chicago from a visit to see family in Missouri. She says the campus looked beautiful during the fall and she was drawn to GU, never imagining all the connections that would come about because of her decision to attend in the fall.
“This is our GU experience that we will never forget,” Angela says.
Dana and Kelli at their daughters’ move-in day at GU in fall 2021.
When telling the story, each mom and daughter uses some form of the phrase, “You’re never going to believe this,” but in the end, Kelli and Dana believe that the power of prayer can connect and reconnect people and bring about unbelievable experiences.
“It is a testimony about the truth of God's word that says all of our days are ordained for us,” Dana says. “As I reflect over how all the pieces came together, it is only God that could do such a thing. It has also taught me that what God can accomplish is far beyond what we in our human minds can imagine and that gives me hope and trust in Him.”
