A bond strengthened through love, advocacy and UM-Dearborn

Graduate program coordinators Sherry Boyd and Rebekah Awood have each worked in UM-Dearborn's College of Engineering and Computer Science for decades. They have the same role at the college, but are responsible for different programs. And their offices are, literally, five steps away from each other.

Awood, a 2001 alum who started working at UM-Dearborn in 2005, and Boyd, who started at CECS in 1998, are a good team. They love their students. They travel together. They spend holidays together. And they share a family bond: They are mother and daughter.

"But I don't call her 'mom' at work - that would be a little weird for people who didn't know that I'm her daughter," Awood says with a smile. "We are a lot alike. We are both detail-oriented, methodical and practice empathy. Of course we love each other, but we genuinely like each other, too. I am fortunate to have that with my mom."

For Mother's Day, Awood is taking her mom to Sheeba Restaurant, which serves Yemeni Mediterranean cuisine - Boyd's pick. They both had it for the first time at a CECS holiday party a couple years ago. "The food is so good. One of the best things I received from working here is what I have gained from meeting people from different cultures," Boyd says. "You learn about people, food, places, traditions and celebrations. I came here from a Baptist background and now have a Shiva statue in my office. Through my co-workers and students, I've learned so much - I'm always learning something new. It keeps me young. Well, feeling young anyway."

Awood says CECS graduate students - especially the international students - often see her mom as their mom, too. Boyd has attended a student's wedding in Morocco. She met an alum's new baby at Naamkaran, a Hindu baby-naming ceremony. And she listens when they come to her in difficult times - like health scares, domestic violence situations and financial hardships.

"Our job is to keep our students on track for graduation. But what we do here goes beyond academics," Boyd says. "I have impressed upon all of my students that this is your life - and you need to make the choices for your life. Don't let life happen to you. You have support and options, even when the situation feels impossible." Without missing a beat, Awood adds, "We will create a safe space for you. We are here to listen and we also know there are great resources on campusand in the community."

Sitting at a table in her daughter's office, Boyd talks about how instrumental supportive people have been in her own journey. "I had a friend who saved my life and saved my children's lives," says Boyd, who is a mother of six, with Awood being the oldest. There's also Jeremy, Rachel, Joanna, Julia and Sarah - in that order. "This wonderful friend listened, she cared and she helped me escape from an abusive relationship," Boyd says. "We are sitting here today because of her. One person who listens and advocates for you can make all the difference. That was more than 30 years ago. But I live my life with that in mind."

Through Boyd's first husband, she was a member of the Independent Fundamental Baptist church. Boyd, who grew up in Dearborn Heights, met and married her ex-husband as a teenager. She moved out of Michigan at his insistence and he slowly separated her from parents, friends and family. They belonged to several IFB churches including the First Baptist Church of Hammond, Indiana, which is featured in the 2023 HBO docuseries, "Let Us Prey: A Ministry of Scandals." Boyd says she and the children were surrounded with messages of racism and sexism, as well as physical abuse. "When I voiced my concerns to church leaders, they told me to pray for him, to stop complaining and being bitter. I was told the worst thing possible for my children was divorce," Boyd says. "I didn't know to what extent he was physically abusing the children - he threatened them with more beatings if they told me. When I realized what was going on, I needed to leave. I needed to save my kids."

Sitting across from her mom, Awood recalls the day their new life began. "It was the summer before I turned 13. My mom woke me and said we were leaving. We snuck away. The abuse from my dad - physical, mental and emotional - was so bad that it's hard for people to even comprehend when we've been through," says Awood, her eyes welling with tears. "My mom got us away from that." Awood helped her mom gather her siblings, who were ages infant to 10, and their belongings.

They left their Indiana home and stayed with the aforementioned friend, who helped them make arrangements to move to Michigan, where Boyd's parents still lived. In addition to her friend in Indiana, Boyd says Wayne County's First Step, a domestic violence crisis center and shelter, supported the family by giving them a safe space to reside and assisted them in the transition to living in Michigan. State resources from Michigan's Department of Health and Human Services - which provided some food, child care and shelter costs - gave Boyd the help needed to become independent.

"My mom and I are bonded. Not a trauma bond, but a close supportive one that has been forged by fire," Awood says. "As an adult, I think how she must have felt as a parent in that situation. We are both very maternal. Family means everything to her and to us."

After the move, Boyd started school at Schoolcraft Community College. The campus was within walking distance from her new home. "I don't know if I fully believe in Providence any more, but that worked out in our favor," she says. "I got an associate's degree and that really helped me in this new life I was creating for us." That degree led to a support staff position at an accounting office.

Awood says her mom was vocal about the importance of earning an education: "She told us that we weren't allowed to get married until we had earned a college degree. She saw how important it was in her own life." Awood listened. She was admitted to UM-Ann Arbor, but decided to enroll at UM-Dearborn. It was closer to home and she liked the smaller size. "Our campus feels so approachable and welcoming. It felt right and it was - I loved my time here," says Awood, who did a study abroad trip to Valencia, Spain, worked as a student at the Early Childhood Education Center and has met people from all walks of life. "I was isolated for a large part of my childhood and grew up hearing about the importance of sameness. There was a lot of talk about white supremacy. That didn't sit well with me even as a child - at what shade of tan, beige or brown do we become different? It didn't make any sense," Awood says. "I got to see how wrong those racist teachings were when I was a student here. On campus, so many people from a variety of places and backgrounds came together. We helped each other with our goals. We cared for each other. Diversity is beautiful and it's what makes us stronger."

Hearing about her daughter's positive experiences at UM-Dearborn, Boyd started looking for job opportunities at the university. Then one day in 1998 - through a newspaper ad - she found one: A $12-per-hour five-month temporary administration position in the UM-Dearborn Alumni Office. Boyd applied and was hired. "I saw it as a way to get in the door so they could get to know me," she says.

When that ended, Boyd was hired for a position in CECS - her work home for the past 27 years. First hired in the college's co-op office, she worked there for about a year and a half. Then she was hired in the Department of Interdisciplinary Programs in 2000 as an administrative assistant. Boyd's role has evolved over time to her current position as an automotive engineering and data science graduate student coordinator.

After Awood earned her bachelor's degree in international and Hispanic studies in 2001, she began working at a southwest Detroit nonprofit organization where she helped connect low-income families to child care and other needed resources. She enjoyed the job, but there were concerns about the organization closing due to a lack of state funding.

So just as Awood inspired her mom to look for a job at UM-Dearborn because of her good experience as a student, Awood started to look for a position at the university because of her mom's positive experience as an employee. Awood was hired as a mechanical engineering graduate student coordinator in 2005. But she didn't work directly with her mom until 2017, when CECS' Department of Interdisciplinary Programs - where Boyd worked - was dissolved and one of its programs was absorbed by the mechanical engineering department.

Awood says working at UM-Dearborn has given her more than a great career. She also met her now-husband, Brian, in 2005 through her job. He was a UM-Dearborn information technology staff member.

Sitting in Awood's office, the two women are surrounded by photos of children - including Awood's children, Ben and Abby, and her nieces and nephews; thank you cards from students and a picture of a vacation cottage on Lake Huron. They are all reminders of the life they enjoy, the family they have and the memories they continue to build at UM-Dearborn and beyond.

Story by Sarah Tuxbury

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