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We are sharing the stories of several of University of Detroit Mercy\u2019s newest alumni to mark the graduation of the Class of 2021.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Bonanza Cummings\u2019 favorite memory from his time at University of Detroit Mercy is one Michiganders may take for granted: The first time he saw snow.<\/p>\n Growing up in the tropical climate of Jamaica, Cummings\u2019 only exposure to snow was through a screen. He watched people having fun and playing in it on television and couldn\u2019t wait to experience that feeling as well.<\/p>\n \u201cThe first moment I saw snow, as soon as I went outside, I ran back in because it was so cold,\u201d Cummings said. \u201cBut that\u2019s something that I\u2019ll never forget.\u201d<\/p>\n In 2017, Cummings left Jamaica, the only home he had ever known, to attend Detroit Mercy in pursuit of a better future. The move to Michigan, he said, was bittersweet, but \u201cmore sweet than bitter.\u201d<\/p>\n Cummings came to Detroit Mercy to grow academically, spiritually and athletically as a sprinter for the Titans\u2019 men\u2019s track and field team. He graduates this May with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and minor in Leadership.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been a hard journey when you look at it,\u201d Cummings said. \u201cHome is where I\u2019d rather be, but it\u2019s not the best place for me. If I was back home, God knows what I\u2019d be doing. I would not have certain opportunities that I have here currently.\u201d<\/p>\n Running has been the centerpiece in Cummings\u2019 life since he was very young. Track and field competitions soon followed. Before starting his collegiate career, he earned spots on a pair of Jamaican national teams.<\/p>\n \u201cEverything I\u2019ve been doing since I was 7 years old led to me being where I\u2019m at today,\u201d Cummings said. \u201cIt\u2019s the discipline and the consistency.\u201d<\/p>\n Cummings has competed in several events for Detroit Mercy\u2019s men\u2019s track and field team, including the 60-, 100- and 200-meter races and the 4×100-meter relay. The COVID-19 pandemic prematurely ended his junior season, but Cummings has rebounded nicely this spring. He recently broke the University\u2019s men\u2019s 100-meter dash record with a time of 10.6 seconds.<\/p>\n Being able to wear the Titans uniform and represent the University athletically has been a \u201cprivilege,\u201d Cummings said.<\/p>\n \u201cThough I have not accomplished all my big goals and dreams that I wanted to accomplish, I must say that it has molded me in such a way that I know my value and I\u2019ve learned a lot of valuable lessons through track and field here,\u201d Cummings said. \u201cI see where it changed me for the better. Even though I may not achieve them on the track as I wanted to, at the end of the day, I got something better, which are life lessons, principles and values that I can apply as I continue to go throughout my life.\u201d<\/p>\n These lessons and principles Cummings attained through track and field include knowing that things won\u2019t always go as planned, that it\u2019s OK to alter traditions and that the sport is just a small part of life.<\/p>\n That\u2019s especially true for his experience at Detroit Mercy, where he was involved in much more than athletics. Cummings was a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, served as a presidential ambassador and volunteered with Ford Community Corps and Residence Life. He also worked as an office assistant for Detroit Mercy\u2019s School of Architecture and a culinary worker for Metz Culinary Management.<\/p>\n Being heavily involved at the University allowed Cummings to meet a variety of people on the McNichols Campus.<\/p>\n \u201cEverybody that I come into contact with, I have a relationship with,\u201d he said. \u201cEvery single person, whether that be the people dealing with the grounds work, the janitors, my coaches, every single person that I meet, we are all connected.\u201d<\/p>\n Cummings cherishes these relationships, as they have helped him develop as a person.<\/p>\n \u201cI build myself around a limitless mentality,\u201d he said. \u201cI know that as I build these relationships, it just facilitates a lot of growth and expansion. There\u2019s never a limiting factor in valuable relationships and valuable connections, because at the end of the day, it\u2019s not about what you know, it\u2019s about who you know. It also makes you understand that you are not in this alone.\u201d<\/p>\n Cummings originally had hoped to study something sports-based at Detroit Mercy. The decision to shift to Business Administration, however, was quite easy.<\/p>\n \u201cEverything revolves around business,\u201d Cummings said. \u201cThere is nothing in this life that is not a business. I saw business as my calling.\u201d<\/p>\n Similar to his performance on the track, Cummings has performed well in the classroom. He is a four-time Detroit Mercy Athletic Director\u2019s Honor Roll member (GPA of at least 3.0), and has earned multiple spots on the Horizon League\u2019s Academic Honor Roll (GPA of at least 3.2).<\/p>\n Despite uncertainty with his future career plans \u2014 Cummings says he approaches life with flexibility while living in the present \u2014 he hopes to one day develop a business initiative that can have a positive impact on people. Cummings plans on returning to Detroit Mercy in the fall to earn a master\u2019s degree.<\/p>\n Cummings isn\u2019t shy when reflecting on his time at Detroit Mercy. He\u2019s met a lot of people who have had a positive impact on him. He feels that the University produces leaders, and that its Jesuit and Mercy values and service-learning opportunities have been transformational. He\u2019s confident his experience at the University will help his career.<\/p>\n And it all started four years ago with a leap of faith.<\/p>\n \u201cLeaving Jamaica for Michigan shifted the dynamics of my life. I cannot really find the word to actually describe that feeling,\u201d he said. \u201cEven though you may look at it and say, \u2018Oh, he\u2019s leaving there. He must miss home.\u2019 When I am here, I feel a home away from home, because I am establishing something bigger for myself.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014\u00a0Ricky Lindsay<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We are sharing the stories of several of University of Detroit Mercy\u2019s newest alumni to mark the graduation of the Class of 2021.\u00a0 Bonanza Cummings\u2019 favorite memory from his time at University of Detroit Mercy is one Michiganders may take for granted: The first time he saw snow. Growing up …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":66,"featured_media":7346,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[13,2,29],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2021\/05\/bonanza_side2.jpg?fit=400%2C579&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8Kcng-1Us","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7344"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/66"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7344"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7344\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7348,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7344\/revisions\/7348"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7346"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Bonanza](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2021\/05\/bonanza_side2.jpg?resize=207%2C300&ssl=1\")
\u201cBitter in the sense that I was leaving that environment, that cultural aspect. But the sweet aspect of it was I got an opportunity to move away from it and be a better person,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n