MSU Students Get Call to Help 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show'
Although they played a small part, MSU students helped to bring a little joy to the lives of Iraqi war veterans Geneva and Eric McLean via The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Ellen's Swaggin' Wagon was in Wichita Falls Thursday afternoon to present the McLeans with some household items and $15,000 to help with rent before the couple is deployed to Afghanistan next year.
The segment of the show in which the students participated was in response to a letter Geneva wrote to Ellen. Geneva told how she and Eric met in Iraq, married, and returned to Texas. The couple had been saving for a down payment for a home, but their son, Quincy, experienced some medical issues that depleted their savings.
Jeremy Motley, president of the American Chemical Society (ACS), was first contacted by the Ellen Show earlier this week as producers were looking for students to help deliver appliances and household items to the McLean family. They found Jeremy through OrgSync, a web-based application that manages student organizations. By chance Gamma Sigma Epsilon, of which Jeremy is a member, came up first on the list.
"It was really random and funny and fate," said Jeremy. "There was really no reason why they selected my name. It just happened that way."
As Gamma Sigma Epsilon is still in the organizational stage, Jeremy called on his fellow members from the ACS to lend a hand. Students were asked to refrain from talking about the show to ensure that the McLeans were surprised.
Students participating were:
Matlock Baggett, senior chemistry/biology major
Kema Richards, senior chemistry (pre-med)
Bradley Fairbanks, senior chemistry major
Tommy Ferrise, sophomore chemistry major
Courtney Bartlett, sophomore chemistry major
Chelsee Arceneaux, sophomore chemistry major
Tin Phan, junior biology major
Alexis Desire, freshman math major
Alissa Tuttle, graduate biology major
The live remote aired Friday and can be seen on Ellen's website at http://ellen.warnerbros.com.