Nicholas Lynch Graduates
With Highest Honors

Nicholas Lynch presented with the H. Austill Pharr Award during graduation ceremonies at the University of Mobile.           Photo special to Arab Today

May 27, 2009
Nicholas Lynch, of Arab, was the recipient of the University of Mobile's highest scholastic award during recent graduation ceremonies.  In addition to the H. Austill Pharr Award, he graduated summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA, was a member of four honor societies, received the Alumni Award, and the Area Award in social science.  He also graduated with a double major.

Nick is the son of Ron and Debbie Lynch, of Arab.  He is a 2004 graduate of Arab High School and currently serves as the Pastor to Students and College at Crawford Baptist Church in Mobile.  He was ordained on April 19, 2009.  He was among 357 graduates from the University of Mobile.

The University of Mobile ran the following article about Nicholas' accomplishments and goals:

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The University of Mobile presented awards to outstanding graduates during the 2009 ceremony on Saturday, May 9, at the Mobile Civic Center.

Receiving the H. Austill Pharr Award, the highest honor given by the University of Mobile, was Nicholas J. “Nick” Lynch of Arab, Ala. The Pharr Award is presented each year by vote of the faculty to the graduating student who best exemplifies the characteristics of scholarship, citizenship and Christian character and service.

Lynch graduated with a double major, receiving a bachelor of arts in theology and in social sciences with secondary education certification. He was nominated for UM’s top award by faculty from both the School of Education and the School of Christian Studies.

School of Christian Studies faculty praised Lynch as “a man of sterling integrity, stable, and a self-starter who sees his work through to the end. He is kind and holds the confidence of his fellow students.”

School of Education faculty said the 23-year-old is a role model for young people and “a truly remarkable man.”

Lynch, who was born with Craniofacial Syndrome which includes deformities of facial features that also affect his eyesight and hearing, made the President’s List every semester at UM, graduated summa cum laude with a 4.0 grade point average, and is a member of four academic honor societies. He also received the Alumni Award and the Area Award in social science. He served as president of the university’s Ministerial Association, participated in Campus Ministry retreat teams, and preached at Baptist churches in south Alabama during UM Days.

Currently part-time college and youth pastor at Crawford Baptist Church in Mobile, Lynch said he is considering entering seminary in the fall. The education degree offers him options for bi-vocational ministry in the future, he said.

Lynch said he uses his physical differences as a motivational tool to succeed.

“I play the underdog card in my mind,” he said. “I’m not supposed to be able to do this. That’s what the world tells me. I use it as a motivating factor, that with God’s help, I can do this. I can overcome this.”

He said his biggest challenge is communicating.

“I look different. I sound different. The fear of communication, of speaking to people, of them getting used to my voice and how I speak – God is pulling me out of my comfort zone and placing me in a position where I have to overcome that,” he said.

Lynch said he sometimes asks a tough question – “why?”

“Why, Lord, did you make me like this,” he explained. Then he recalls Psalm 139, “that tells us we are beautifully and wonderfully made.”

Under his leadership, the youth group at Crawford Baptist has grown from 15 to 40 teenagers. Lynch said his physical differences open a door to ministering to young people at a time when they are yearning to fit into the crowd.

“They get to see somebody who is, quote, ‘not normal’ by the world’s standards deals with that day in and day out, and how hopefully I overcome that. It does give me credibility, I think, and more of an opportunity to minister to them. I think it makes them more comfortable to see a youth pastor who’s not, by the world’s standards, the best looking or the best communicator,” he said.

When asked his aim in life, Lynch said, “My response, Lord willing and prayerfully, that in everything I do, people see Christ.”