He is Russian, single and likely to mingle—but not on FaceBook, because he deleted his account to clear his schedule for running, swimming and relaxing with friends. He likes funny commercials, enjoys sleeping in, and loves PUC.

Ilya Morar, a.k.a “Elijah,” is a sophomore nursing major and genuine optimist with a big heart. He says, “I like to help people; I like to see them happy.” As a child, Ilya felt inspired by his Kenyan babysitter to become a missionary through Maranatha so that he could “help the people in the great land of Africa.” That life purpose has stuck. Ilya’s passions, however, do not end with a desire to help people.

Ilya has many loves; chief among them is technical drawing. If he were to pursue a career other than nursing, his second dream job would be to design cars (career choices three and four would be architect and military helicopter pilot respectively). As a high school sophomore, Ilya was accepted into a summer Mazda recruiting Car and Motorcycle Design program at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, where he contributed designs to the company. He is still often found randomly sketching designs on scratch paper and chalkboards—any writable surface that won’t get him into trouble, really.

To put to rest any question of Ilya’s authenticity as a Russian, he was, in fact, born in Russia and speaks Russian fluently, but is not a Russian spy—although his friends jokingly refer to him as one and he readily gushes with enthusiasm about military paraphernalia and movie characters portraying Russian spies.

Should you find occasion to stop by the Student Finance Office, you will likely find Ilya there, drinking a lot of water and working hard to keep the office running like a well-oiled machine. If not, you will surely spot him around campus enjoying life, pursuing his dreams and speaking with a slight Russian accent.