Hope in The Valley of the Dry Bones
Benjamin Ewell is best remembered for his 16 year tenure as the President of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. For a century and a half, this prestigious Virginia school had been a leader among American universities. Then came the Civil War. In the hard days of Reconstruction which followed, William and Mary went bankrupt. Soon it had a deserted campus, decaying buildings, and no students. As with so many Southern schools, after that tragic war, it was written off as dead by everyone. Everyone, except its president.
President Ewell had given his best years to that school, he had mortgaged his own farm to fund the school - he refused to give up now. So, every morning, President Ewell went to the deserted campus, climbed the tower of its main building, and rang the bells, calling the school to class. He acted as if the school was still there. People thought he was crazy. But for seven years, every day, President Ewell rang the bells at William and Mary, in defiance of the despair and hopelessness that would destroy everything he held valuable. And eventually, miraculously, it worked. Others caught his vision. Students, teachers, and money returned. Today, America's second oldest university thrives again, because of the hope of a magnificent dreamer.
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