The Man Behind the Mirror

While many hands play an enormous role in the execution of such a spectacular event—Regent’s commencement ceremony—there is one volunteer every single graduate has encountered for the past twenty years. The man with the mirrors.

This volunteer, Harrison Kramer (Regent Alumnus of the Class of 2004), has selflessly served Regent students for the past two decades of graduations by holding up mirrors and walking down the line of the anxiously waiting graduates to ensure they look and feel their best on their big day. If you have not met him during graduation, you may have seen him on social media or on the news, as a video of him holding his infamous mirrors went viral in 2022. Such an act of kindness is a mere “reflection” of how Harrison embodies servitude.

A Lifetime of Selflessness

Harrison has always had a heart for ministry and helping others. No matter what Harrison found himself doing, he exemplified what being the “hands and feet of Jesus” should look like. He began his professional journey as a schoolteacher for 10 years while also helping with his church’s children’s ministry, which traveled all along the East Coast to help with children’s crusades. This ministry continued to expand, and Harrison was left with a choice: go overseas and continue helping this ministry or blaze a new path. While he was sitting on this decision, there happened to be a Regent student helping with the crusades. The Regent student began sharing stories of his time at Regent, which inspired Harrison to make the decision to move to Virginia Beach and continue his education.

Harrison quickly fell in love with Regent. He found great community rather quickly in the various computer rooms on campus and in his classes—getting to meet students from all different majors. Particularly, he got to connect with Regent Theatre students and developed a love for the Regent performances. To this day, Harrison has watched or volunteered at every single Regent performance since his time as a student.

As a side gig, Harrison would do some freelance video editing work. One of his opportunities was for the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), where he was asked to create six commercials.

“I just wanted to do a good job,” Harrison explained as he ended up making not six but 30 commercials for the job. The CBN team was astounded at not just the excellence of the work but also Harrison’s innate desire to go beyond expectations. CBN then offered him a job as a producer. He attributes his desire to do excellent and innovative work to what he learned at Regent University.

From there, the list goes on of Harrison’s various serving-focused roles in his professional career. He was an admissions counselor, the man behind the camera, and a telephone prayer counselor. He later became a nursing assistant on the trauma floor of a hospital in Norfolk.

“I found [being on the trauma floor] a very natural environment for me. I just found myself in a place where I was going to give my all. These patients need me. My floor needs me.”

In reflection on his lifetime, Harrison knows the Lord has asked him to use his hands and to give. It is evident that Harrison responded to this call of God. On all the paths life took him and the various places in which he found himself, Harrison truly participated in being the hands and feet of Christ and giving his all through excellence, innovation, and integrity.

The Story of the Mirrors

Out of all the things a graduation volunteer could do on Commencement Day, where did Harrison get the idea to hold up mirrors?

During his time at Regent, the office he worked in, the Admissions Office, was heavily involved in preparing the graduation ceremonies. His office was asking for volunteers to help with various tasks on graduation day, such as handing out water bottles and organizing the lines of students.

Harrison loved graduation; he grew genuinely excited and proud of everyone’s accomplishments. Such enthusiasm inspired a heart to ensure every graduate felt special and at their best on this important day.

While he was willing to help in any way he could, Harrison’s creative mind and selfless heart could not help but notice a place where someone could stand right before the graduates process. Harrison got the idea to, once again, go above and beyond the call and bring mirrors to graduation.

As graduates walked by, Harrison would hold up handheld mirrors so they could check their regalia, fix their hair, check if they had anything in their teeth, and process confidently.

Seemingly simple, this act beautifully depicts Harrison’s heart. Harrison’s act of kindness helps others see themselves better so they can shine, while Harrison is content to stay behind the scenes. It appears that Harrison has been holding metaphoric mirrors his whole life. From being a cameraman to a nursing assistant to an avid volunteer, Harrison has a lifetime of helping others so they may experience life to the fullest.

“Harrison, You Are Going Viral!”

After twenty years of quietly serving in this capacity, someone turned the world’s gaze on Harrison. Moments before the Commencement Ceremony in 2022, a graduate created a TikTok using a video of Harrison holding up mirrors for students in line. Shortly after it was posted, multiple other larger TikTok accounts picked up the video, and the views began to skyrocket. Harrison began receiving messages alerting him of the news, but he did not even have a TikTok or know much about it. His friends kept him posted as the view count kept going up, all the way to over 40 million views.

As if becoming a viral social media sensation was not enough, CBS News reached out to Harrison to do a segment highlighting his act of kindness, with CBN News also covering the story. Harrison was also met with so much support and celebration of his service in the comments of the viral posts. Harrison was truly overwhelmed by all the love and notoriety. He even created his own TikTok account!

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As we approach the 2024 Commencement Ceremony, try not only to find Harrison roaming around serving our students but also to thank him for two decades of choosing to selflessly volunteer his time so that Regent graduates can feel like a million dollars while celebrating one of the biggest accomplishments of their lives.