November 20, 2025
East Texas Baptist University honored 97 graduating seniors with the presentation of their official ETBU Class Ring. The Ring Blessing ceremony was held on Wednesday, November 19, for the soon-to-be ETBU alumni who will walk the stage in December 2025. Inspired by Deuteronomy 6, the class ring serves as a symbol for ETBU alumni to carry and display the love of Christ throughout their lives.
ETBU Director of Alumni Relations, Cari Johnson (’94), shared a powerful chapel message on the transformative power of change.
“Some change you choose,” Johnson said. “Some you barely notice. All of it, the happy, the heavy, the hurtful, the hard can be redeemed into evidence that God is good, and He is wise, and He can be trusted. God is unapologetic about His agenda with change. He wants to change you. He wants to change the world. Growth equals change.”
Each ETBU Class Ring features the seal of East Texas Baptist, surrounded by the cornerstones of the University – Veritas, Mores, and Scientia, which translate from Latin to Truth, Character, and Knowledge. Inscribed in the ring are significant icons of ETBU and the Christian faith, such as the historic Marshall Hall, the Light on the Hill, Max Greiner’s Divine Servant Statue, and the Bible. These symbols are meant to remind alumni of God’s work in their lives and their transformational experience at East Texas Baptist University. Students receive a keychain that is a replica of their class ring during their freshman orientation, Tiger Camp, so they can look forward to the ring they will one day receive.
“Receiving my ring today reminds me of how God has faithfully guided every step of my journey at ETBU,” senior Christian ministry major Darcy Palmer said. “I’ve learned and grown so much here, and now I’m excited to go out and share His glory with everyone around me. I had ETBU’s theme verse, Proverbs 3:5–6, engraved on the inside of my ring. It’s a constant reminder to trust in the Lord, to remember how He brought me here, and to trust Him as He sends me out on the path ahead.”
The ceremony celebrates students' accomplishments during their time at ETBU and serves as a milestone for students leading up to commencement. As a token of appreciation from the University to graduating seniors, the ETBU Class Ring symbolizes the University’s blessing as students depart ETBU to pursue their career callings. Johnson delivered a blessing over the graduating seniors to conclude the Ring Blessing chapel service.
“Seniors, we gather today to pray for you,” Johnson said. “As you finish this segment of your education with grit and grace, it's our desire that each of you move beyond this campus at just the right time, better equipped and filled with God's Spirit, ready to step into the next season of your calling. Who you are is important to ETBU. It's important to who ETBU is. May God's Word be a lamp to your feet and a light to your path. May His love in you light the way for others, and may the Light on the Hill never die.”