Adefunke Adeyeye ’09

Although she was only 16 when she enlisted in the Marine Corps, Adefunke Adeyeye’s father was not surprised by his daughter’s ambition. “He remembered a time when he was a government official and we lived in the American Embassy area in Nigeria, when I was maybe 7 years old,” said Adeyeye, a sophomore in the Virginia Women’s Institute for Leadership. “I told him I wanted to be like the Embassy guards. They were U.S. Marines, and he had much respect for them.”

Adeyeye, 22, was 15 when her family — members of one of the largest royal families in Nigeria — relocated to the United States. Her first name, Adefunke, was bestowed by her grandmother to mean “the crown given to me so that I can care for it” and reminds her of her heritage and growing up with 24-hour bodyguards, even at the boarding schools she attended.

Unlike most cadets in VWIL at Mary Baldwin, Adeyeye is already a seasoned, albeit still young, veteran of wartime service. She is a corporal with five years experience as a U.S. Marine, and was deployed to Iraq in 2003 for eight months. Her service included the emotional duty of caring for the bodies of fallen American armed forces personnel and Iraqi civilians. “You have to be very careful with how you process some remains because of religious beliefs and social practices,” she said. “The service taught me to be respectful of people and to practice patience, honor, courage, and so much more.”

Adeyeye is at MBC to take a break from that taxing day-to-day responsibility — she has reported for duty as a reserve officer one weekend a month since January 2006. She quickly embraced the people and environment of the college as a member of African Student Kollective and the MBC field hockey team, for which she earned all-conference honorable mention recognition.

We caught up with this nULL to ask her more questions about her background and MBC experience — and she obliged, over holiday break, no less!

My major:
I love majoring in anthropology because I feel a connection to putting a name or face to a body or bones. I am concentrating on medical anthropology; I find the human skeletal system amazing. I am continually surprised by what I can find out about a human being and their history from a skeleton. I hope someday to be a forensic anthropologist for the CIA, FBI, or UN. My minor in biochemistry compliments the major in many ways, and also leads toward my goal of forensic anthropology. My mother is a doctor, and it pleases her to know I am headed toward medical school, probably after I retire from the military.

Who’d play you in a movie?
We’re not similar in appearance, but I would have Angelina Jolie play me because it seems like we have almost the same personality. We really don’t care about what people say or think. Yea for carefree spirits.

In your home or dorm room CD/tape player?
I don’t have a CD player, but my 60GB iPod is loaded with a lot of oldies and rock and roll, probably some 1980s pop, hip hop, and dance or salsa music. I love listening to a variety of genres.

People would be surprised to know:
I love to listen to different types of music— from Tim McGraw and Bruce Springsteen to Avenged Sevenfold, Vivaldi, and Led Zeppelin.

What is your favorite word?
This might not be a surprise to those who know me, but my favorite word is cliché. I use it so many ways, such as “that’s so cliché!”

What is your least favorite word?
I don’t think the Lord’s name should be associated with profanity.

What sound or noise do you love?
I love the sounds of a train.

What sound or noise do you hate?
A crying child, so I always try to help kids who are upset.

What profession would you like to participate in and why?
Forensic anthropology. I worked with a forensic anthropologist from the U.S. armed forces medical examiner’s office, and I was so impressed by their skill and professionalism.

What is your favorite MBC tradition and why?
I love Apple Day, because it’s a day that you don’t go to class, but, instead, enjoy the day with your friends and schoolmates.

*This profile was originally printed in the January 2007 issue of The Cupola. Several of the above questions are courtesy of the questionnaire invented by Bernard Pivot, used frequently on Bravo’s Inside the Actors Studio