“You know where my heart is and you know where my needs are.”

It was a Sunday after communion when Mary Woessner, secretary for Student Services,put her needs into God’s hands. Woessner had been looking for a new job – one that would allow her to be at home with her family on the weekends. It would only take two weeks before she found Waynesburg University.

She was on her way to pick up her son and his friends from a sleepover, when a friend mentioned a job opening at the university.

“It truly was divine intervention,” Woessner said. “I just happened to stop in and visit a friend of mine.”

Woessner has been working at Waynesburg for four and a half years. She has a wide range of functions within her role on campus, including housing information, meal plans, contact information, new student forms and more. Woessner’s role encompasses working with several organizations on campus, and is a go-to person for students in need.

“We all have new chapters in our lives and it’s nice to have some place to go,” Woessner said.

Woessner is also in charge of reserving rooms in Stover for meetings and presentations. She works closely with Pat Bristor, associate dean of students, as well as Rev. James Tinnemeyer, vice president for Student Services.

Something Woessner holds in high importance is getting emergency contacts from students.

“Information changes and students forget to tell us,” Woessner said. “That’s why we reach out every year – just so we can keep our information up-to-date.”

Woessner said she had the opportunity to work in several different positions that interact with people, but the amount of support she’s has at Waynesburg is greater than previous jobs.

“I’ve been blessed to work in a lot of different positions with a lot of different companies,” Woessner said. “Now here I am at Waynesburg. You can have the most challenging in your life, and if you have support from your co-workers, your staff, you can make it happen. It’s the best of both worlds here because not only do I have this amazing support of community but it’s just a great job.”

What helps Woessner flourish in her position is the Christian roots of the university, while helping students experience the same type of atmosphere.

“I love the fact that it’s a Christian environment; that’s where I thrive,” she said. “I love everything about this Christian environment, we profess it. Hopefully the students experience it because it should be more than just verbal.”

Woessner’s main goal at the end of the day – from the emails she sends to students to the ID’s she replaces – is to help people.

“This is so cliché but I absolutely love helping people, that’s just the way God made me,” she said. “I have this incredible love for people and what drives me is helping them and brightening their day, and I get to do that here.”