{"id":62020,"date":"2011-05-13T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-05-13T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news-draft\/uncategorized\/path-blazed-by-siblings-helped-cranston-native-find-way-at-uri\/"},"modified":"2011-05-13T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2011-05-13T00:00:00","slug":"path-blazed-by-siblings-helped-cranston-native-find-way-at-uri","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/2011\/05\/path-blazed-by-siblings-helped-cranston-native-find-way-at-uri\/","title":{"rendered":"Path blazed by siblings helped Cranston native find way at URI"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"press-release-import\">\n\t\tCommunications and Public Relations double major found passion in service<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"250\" height=\"172\" align=\"right\" src=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/OU-1qJfWA2g\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/>KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 May 13, 2011 \u2013 During his senior year of high school, Kevin Colman was determined to make his own way when it came time to choose a college. His three older siblings had all earned degrees from the University of Rhode Island.<\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n\u201cMy thought was that I was going to do something different. I wanted to go somewhere else,\u201d said Colman, a Cranston native earning a double major in communications and public relations. \u201cMy sister was the one who convinced me that URI was this amazing place.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\nMary Colman gave Kevin an inside look at URI. He didn\u2019t take a regular tour of the campus, but rather a behind-the-scenes look that helped him realize he could still create a unique experience for himself while staying close to home.<\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n\u201cShe brought me around the campus and really showed me the school. After that, I saw the leadership in her and saw how much she had grown here,\u201d Colman said. \u201cShe really inspired me in that way. After that, I knew this was the place for me, and I really wanted to go here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\nThe decision to follow siblings Erin, Brendan and Mary to URI certainly paid dividends for Colman. Over the last four years, he has been a member of the Student Alumni Association and started the URI chapter of Student United Way after a community service trip to Biloxi, Miss. during his sophomore year.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news-draft\/wp-content\/uploads\/news\/sites\/16\/2021\/05\/Colman056.jpg\" width=\"200\" height=\"301\" align=\"left\"\/>He also got involved with URI\u2019s Catholic Center and the Newman Club, joining members on service trips to Nicaragua, where he helped build a new orphanage for disabled and abandoned children in Diriamba. The orphanage is run by Mustard Seed, a Roman Catholic organization dedicated to caring, sharing and training, and lifting the most vulnerable members of society, especially handicapped and abandoned children, and marginalized communities.<\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n\u201cI\u2019m very religious, and I love doing community service, so it\u2019s something that combined two of my biggest passions,\u201d said Colman, an extraordinary minister of the Eucharistic at Christ the King Roman Catholic Parish in Kingston. \u201cIt really centered my faith and centered my life, which allowed me to grow as a person. <\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n\u201cTo go to Nicaragua the first year, not knowing what to expect, and then going down there the second year to see the progress that was made at the orphanage was amazing. It\u2019s been one of the most amazing experiences in my life. It\u2019s unbelievable because it is so eye-opening. At the same time, it\u2019s really refreshing to separate yourself from your own world in order to do something to help the kids.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\nCommunity service is clearly a driving force for Colman, who spent the spring semester interning with Pawtucket-based toy giant Hasbro, Inc. in the community relations department. He\u2019ll stay with Hasbro through the summer before spending a year doing service work, hopefully through AmeriCorps. <\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n\u201cURI has helped me develop that high-energy personality and that willingness to go out and try new things,\u201d Colman said. <\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\nURI Department of Communications &amp; Marketing photo by Michael Salerno Photography.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Communications and Public Relations double major found passion in service KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 May 13, 2011 \u2013 During his senior year of high school, Kevin Colman was determined to make his own way when it came time to choose a college. His three older siblings had all earned degrees from the University of Rhode Island. 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