David Greenlaw and DeeDee Rasmussen at the Florida Campus Compact Awards Gala on November 7, 2012 in Tampa, Fla.

It was quite a surprise for David Greenlaw, President of Adventist University of Health Sciences, to receive the Thomas E. Gamble Service Legacy Award at Florida Campus Compact (FL|CC) Awards Gala on November 7, 2012.

FL|CC is comprised of more than 50 college and university presidents in Florida committed to joining education and service.

The award recognizes an individual’s lifetime and legacy of service. DeeDee Rasmussen, executive director of FL|CC, said Greenlaw promotes collegiate service and servant leadership both at Adventist University and through Florida Campus Compact.

“Dr. Greenlaw models a service ethic that will inspire a legacy of servant leaders for generations to come,” Rasmussen said.

Service has always played an important part in Greenlaw’s life, especially after spending six years teaching at a college in Africa.

“No matter where you are, human beings are human beings. If there’s an opportunity to help then we ought to be doing that,” Greenlaw said.

At the University, service is incorporated with classes through service learning, where academic objectives are met by contributing to community needs. There are also mission trips, grant-funded service initiatives, a clinic for patients with no insurance, and an annual employee service day. These traditions have created a culture of service on-campus that complements the University’s mission of Healthcare as Ministry.

“With community engagement we want our students to adopt their profession as their ministry,” said Ruby Gutierrez, director of community engagement.

Gutierrez said that the University’s leadership makes all the difference with supporting the University’s ongoing initiatives. Ultimately, the goal is not only to educate professionals that are good at what they do, but also live a life of service.

Greenlaw was honored and surprised at the award he received, which was encouragement to continue serving others. “Our hope is to provide things for the community that cannot be provided by anyone else. If we don’t reach out to our community, who is going to?”

-by Sarah Crowder