Alumni Interview: Daija Frazier
To start off, can you tell a little about yourself?
Okay. Well, I’m Daija Frazier, I graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a business marketing degree, I’m currently working for the dining services here on campus, and my hobbies include dancing and drumming.
How long have you been a Christian? What is the sort of abbreviated story of your life with Christ so far?
I’ve been a Christian for as long as I can remember. Like anyone else, I've had battles with my faith. I want to say when I was in high school, I was really battling with not feeling the Lord in my life. I didn’t feel the connection basically, and it really got me down. I went to my mom about it and said, “I’m not feeling the Lord’s presence and I’m really upset about it.” And that was - I want to say - one of the only roadblocks I’ve had, but I still continued with my faith and especially after joining the Wesley, I grew closer to Him.
How long have you been going to the Wesley?
I’ve been going to the Wesley for my entire four years of college at Tech. I was at freshman orientation and met the lovely Caroline Doughty. She was the one who brought me here and connected me to everyone I know and love now. So I was technically coming here since before I even started college! But, yeah, it’s been a great four years, and I plan to be around and stay around for as long as I’m in Ruston.
Do you remember your first impression of coming to the building after you met Caroline?
Oh, yeah. So, during the summer Alana Wagner reached out to me and said, “Hey, I’m Alana, I’m an intern at the Wesley,” and she offered to show me around one day. She picked me up from my apartment, I met her, and she brought me here. It was so lively, it was like the craziest thing I'd walked into. There was music playing and intense ping pong tournaments going on. It was just a beautiful, lively atmosphere, and I’ll never forget the first time I walked into the doors and saw everything. It was a lot! I was introduced to so many people; I met Nicole, Garrett, all the past interns, everyone in between. It was really the most accepted I’ve ever been because everyone was so happy to be meeting me. Within the first week, I was even playing at the 7:03 show. It was a great experience.
So I guess one answer might be the atmosphere, but what are some other things that kept you coming back all this time, even past when all those people you first met had already left?
I enjoyed blitzing, reaching out to people and inviting them into something that I loved. I thought that was one of the best things to do, especially doing it with the people I was comfortable with. Also small group kept me engaged. I had been going to Katelyn Fajardo’s group for the longest time and grew closer to her. It was my favorite thing that happened during the week. I couldn’t wait to go!
That’s awesome. Do you have any other specific favorite Wesley memories?
Oh, Race Talks! Yeah, it was really heartwarming to see a ministry openly talk about race and our problems in our country, and I just knew I was around the right people to learn from because everyone knew it was a problem. I was so happy we could openly talk about it in a church setting. That was very life-changing for me because I had never seen anything like that before. So Race Talks is probably the biggest for me. Also any worship we got to do at a service was my favorite.
In what ways has having a community (especially during college) affected your life?
My first thought coming to college wasn’t that I was going to join anything. I actually didn’t even know there were campus ministries, so that wasn’t on my mind at the time, but I am so thankful that I’ve been part of a campus ministry because, like I said, it helped me grow closer to God. Having community, having people that are excited to get to know you in a way that’s genuine is important. I mean, college is where you make those life-long friends. So community is very important.
Yeah, for sure. So, it can be anything, but what messages or words from scriptures, sermons, conversations, etc., do you find yourself coming back to?
Well, my favorite book of the Bible is Acts, and I actually saved one of my favorite verses. It’s Acts 2:25: King David said this about him: ‘I see that the LORD is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.’ That’s one of my favorites because I feel like it’s so true. During that time when I wasn’t feeling His presence, I was so shaken because I had always felt His warmth, and I was just wondering, “What is happening to me? Why am I not as close to Him as I once was?” So, that verse really struck me because that’s how I feel now. I honestly believe that I am truly blessed. I always want to be, and I always hope to be.
What advice from your own experience of being in college and being a Christian would you give to other students?
My advice would be to find an organization that fits you. It’s very important to have a place where you can go get away from schoolwork and your dorm. There’s so many things that Tech offers that people don’t know about or go to. It actually really opened my eyes when I was talking to a friend because we were on two different wave-lengths about it. She was telling me she didn’t like it here at Tech. What she was saying was devastating because I was so sorry that she didn’t find what I found when I first got here. I found a place that I call home, a place that I went to get away from troubles, and a place I went to pray about my troubles. Even if you’re introverted, it’s important to get out there and break out of your bubble. I know it’s scary, but there’s a lot of good, genuine people out there. You just have to find them.
That’s so beautiful! So, you said before that you’ve graduated and you still work at Tech, but I guess it’s still hard not to have that thought of “What am I going to do when I’m not at Tech or the Wesley?” So, my question is, how do you feel about going forward as a Christian in the future?
I’m very excited! I can’t wait to venture off from Louisiana. I plan on moving to Dallas or Denver or Phoenix. Like that verse in Acts says, I know no matter where I go, He’ll be with me. I know He’ll guide me every step of the way. I can’t wait to settle down and find a church that I can really just call my home. I’ve established the Wesley as my church, and, for the most part, this is where I came and got my community and did service, so I’ve been thinking about where next. I can’t wait to find that church that I’ll be with for the time that I move forward. Well, I actually plan on moving a lot, so I know it’ll be hard, especially with the job field I'm in, but I know no matter what, I’ll find Him wherever I go. I know that He’ll be with me.
As said above, Daija Frazier is an alum of Tech. She graduated in Fall 2020 with a degree in business marketing. Daija is known by everyone at the Wesley for her kindness, her amazing dancing skills, and her fun-loving spirit.