Posts filed under ‘Campus events’
A Heartfelt Goodbye
This public information photo shows some of the 12,000 attendees at Joe Paterno's memorial service at the Bryce Jordan Center.
Father Matthew Laffey of the Penn State Catholic Center set the tone—and provided a broad outline of Joe Paterno’s life—in his opening prayer. “Thank you for this man. … How fortunate this corner of your kingdom has been.”
The details came slowly over the next two hours Thursday afternoon, as speakers at A Memorial for Joe painted pictures of the man who helped to build—and became largely synonymous with—Penn State.
We met the competitive Joe. “The bigger the game, the quieter he was in practice,” said Todd Blackledge, quarterback of the 1982 national championship team. “But the gleam in his eyes told the story.”
The literary Joe, who never called Susan Welch, dean of the College of the Liberal Arts, anything other than “Dean,” who donated millions of dollars to the library, and who clearly passed that love of literature on to his son. Here’s who Jay Paterno quoted in his closing eulogy: Sophocles, William Blatty, U2, John Adams, John Ruskin, Tennessee Williams, Martin Luther King Jr., and Arthur Ashe.
The funny Joe, so quick with a one-liner, who told Jimmy Cefalo’s mother on a recruiting visit, “Your pasta is better than Mrs. Cappelletti’s.” (more…)
Guiding Joe Home—in Silence
College Avenue as the funeral procession made its way through the crowd, as seen by our art director, Carole Otypka.
So quiet. So sad. So respectful.
Usually when College Avenue is packed with thousands of people who are standing in the middle of the street with cell phones, it’s a disaster waiting to happen. Not today.
Usually when people have to wait outside, in the cold, for well over an hour, tempers fray. Not today.
Like so many other Penn State fans, alumni, students, and employees, we the magazine staff went outside to pay our respects as Joe Paterno’s funeral procession wound through campus. We stood at the closest spot to our office, at Fraser Street and College Avenue, and waited so long that our fingers and toes froze. None of us would have missed it.
Graphic designer Jessie Knuth snapped this photo of the hearse.
The procession arrived a little before 5. First the hearse, carrying Joe’s coffin. Then the blue bus … with Sue Paterno sitting in the first seat, Joe’s seat for 46 years, one that this year’s team left empty after their coach was fired. His 17 grandchildren waved at the crowd. A few other cars and buses followed.
It was totally silent.
I was following along on Twitter—it’s worth checking out the hashtag #guidejoehome for real-time observations and emotions—so I knew that when the procession reached us, it would get quiet. It had everywhere else. But that didn’t dull the impact … wow.
Lori Shontz, senior editor
An Early Morning Goodbye
This photo from Nick Sloff '92 shows the line outside Pasquerilla Spiritual Center on Tuesday afternoon
I arrived at 6 a.m. Wednesday, nearly two hours before officials again opened the doors to Pasquerilla Spiritual Center for Joe Paterno’s viewing. And I wasn’t even the first one there.
By far. The Early Bird award goes to David Brown of Greensburg, Pa. He’s a Pitt alum, but has been a Penn State — and Paterno fan — his entire life. Brown arrived at 4 a.m. He left his house at midnight.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if there had been 1,000 fans here at 4,” Brown told me. “I just wanted to pay my respects.”
By 6:30, it was just a handful of people. The sun hadn’t risen yet and it was the type of late January morning where you could see — and feel — your breath.
By 7, there were 75 people. Fifteen minutes later, that number doubled. And at 7:40, when officials opened the doors of the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center for Joe Paterno’s viewing, the line had grown to 1,000.
Thousands of fans, supporters and members of the Penn State community are expected to pass through the spiritual center from 8 to noon Wednesday to pay their final respects to Paterno.
When I left Pasquerilla Tuesday night at about 11, police told me that “tens of thousands of people” attended Tuesday’s 10-hour window. When I walked through at 10:40, Paterno’s children, Jay ’91 and Mary Kay Hort ’86, stood by the exit and shook hands, hugged and thanked supporters who walked through. Sue Pohland ’62, was also there until the end — sitting in the chairs normally reserved for the choir, wearing a thick red coat, her arm around one of her granddaughters.
The second guy in line Wednesday had a story, too. John Myers, 70, from Tamaqua, Pa., arrived at 5 a.m. after a two-and-a half hour drive.
“It was worth it,” he said.
Myers has been a Penn State fan for more than 60 years. He remembers visiting State College in high school. After the last football game every year, the school would send a bus up so students could attend Penn State games. The bus cost 75 cents.
Emily Kaplan, intern
P.S. To see more of Nick’s photography work, click here to check out his blog.
A Morning Run, 324, and a Classic Commericial
On my way into the office Wednesday morning, I walked through Paterno Library, where students and fans and alumni are leaving memories of Joe on Post-It notes, some attached to bulletin boards, others stuck to a Stand-Up Joe.
Among the snippets that stood out:
Waved and asked how I was during my morning run.
You’ve made a proud Paterno Fellow out of me.
” … and all you cool cats.” JoePa at Football Eve 2009.
Joe, I love you. 324.
B10 commercial. Come to Penn State.
The last is my favorite, I’ll admit. The Big Ten Network commercial from a couple of years back is hilarious; it’s Joe at his most deranged. Here’s a YouTube version that’s a little fuzzy. Watch to the end. Enjoy.
Lori Shontz, senior editor
‘Joe Paterno was a Human Being Like the Rest of Us’
This photo by Annemarie Mountz ’84 of public information shows how many came to remember Joe Paterno on Sunday night.
I’m not going to lie—it felt a little odd. Just over two months after I stood on the Old Main lawn along with thousands of students holding candles to remember the victims of child sexual abuse, there I was again Sunday night. Same place, literally, at the foot of the Old Main steps. Same songs by the Blue Band. Many of the same students, I’m sure.
But this vigil was in honor of Joe Paterno.
There were tears again, yes—football players Mike Wallace and Matt McGloin, in particular, choked up as they remembered their coach, who died Sunday morning of metastatic lung cancer. But there was some laughter, too. And a similar feeling of togetherness as the students linked arms and swayed as they sang the alma mater. I wasn’t surprised this time—as I was at the previous vigil—that all of the students know all of the words. That just wasn’t the case back in my day.
What stood out the most to me were the words of Stefen Wisniewski, a former All-America offensive lineman (and Academic All-America) from one of those storied Penn State families; his father and uncle played for Paterno, too. Now a lineman for the Oakland Raiders, Wisniewski was the vigil’s last speaker. This is what he said:
A lot has been talked about today about Joe Paterno’s legacy, and unfortunately, a lot has been said about how the recent events that have taken place over the last few months might affect that legacy. A lot of supporters of Joe Paterno say that he really didn’t do anything wrong and that it shouldn’t have any effect on his legacy. Others say that all the good he has done and his time at Penn State should overshadow what he may have done wrong.
In my opinion, what happened in the recent events and the firing of Joe Paterno is that this figure who we looked up to as this super-human figure, this super legend, that he was kind of reduced to the level of a human being, like the rest of us. And that’s why we hated to see it. But the reality is, Joe Paterno was a human being like the rest of us. He did make wrong decisions. He did maybe fail to make right decisions. Like the rest of us do. Like the rest of us do, he’s done things in his life that require forgiveness, and he’s done things in his life that require redemption.
But when I think back over Joe Paterno’s legacy, the events that have happened over the last three months won’t even cross my mind. When I think back on Joe Paterno’s legacy, I’m gonna remember sitting at his kitchen table as he recruited me five years ago, eating cookies made by SuePa. And I remember leaving that meeting both excited about the prospect of playing at Penn State for Joe Paterno and simultaneously terrified at what he might do to me if I didn’t go there, the same place where my father and uncle both played.
I’m also going to remember …. Whew, so many memories. I’m also going to remember when Coach, at age 82, got down in an offensive lineman stance and showed me how to snap a football. Because I was terrible at it. I’m better now.
I also remember, as a Penn State student, walking through Paterno Library, a library that exists only because Joe Paterno loved the university enough to donate millions of dollars for it to be created. Because he was committed, not just to Penn State football, but to Penn State as a university. He was committed to education. He loved his place, and all of us who are part of Penn State are better as a result.
I also remember as a player, two years ago, playing against Northwestern, being down three touchdowns, coming back to win JoePa’s 400th victory. Watching players carry him off and seeing that No. 400 up on the screen. A number that is never gonna be touched by any coach ever again because no one has the commitment that Joe Paterno does.
I also remember that Joe Paterno taught us about success with honor and that it wasn’t enough for him just to win football games. He wanted to do it the right way. He wanted to do it with players who were going to graduate and players who would go on to be leaders in their communities and great husbands, great fathers. And he really did care as much about his players’ character as he did about what kind of football players they were going to be. Because he knew that our football careers were very short, but that we’re going to be husbands and fathers and leaders the rest of our lives.
And finally, when I think of Joe Paterno, I’ll remember that after every game he ever coached, whether it be a great loss or a great victory, that Joe Paterno knelt down with his players after the game and prayed the Our Father with us. We love you, Joe. And it’s my prayer that that father God you prayed to after each and every game will grant you rest and let his eternal light shine upon you.
Lori Shontz, senior editor
Back to School—And Back to the Poster Sale
This movie poster adorns a lot of dorm-room walls on campus.
What’s a tell-tale sign that it’s the first week of classes at Penn State? How about the poster sale upstairs at the HUB?
The event is hosted by Beyond the Wall, a Stroudsburg-based company which holds more than 700 poster sales at colleges across the country over six weeks throughout the year.
Penn State’s poster sale is one of the three largest, salesman Matt Reinke said, along with University of Illinois and University of Texas-Austin. Beyond the Wall has been in business with Penn State for over 20 years. Reinke has worked the event for the last 12.
I wandered upstairs last week to check out the sale, which is much smaller in spring than in fall—when most students are first moving in to new dorms or apartment.
“Our fall poster sale is about five times the size of the spring one,” Reinke told me as he worked the cash register.
So what has changed in the 12 years Reinke’s been around?
“Over the years I’ve noticed that our most popular posters have shifted from more art-based posters to pop culture posters,” Reinke said. “I don’t know what that says about people or our society; it’s just what I’ve noticed.”
Recently, movie posters have been the biggest hits. Inception posters are best-sellers in the last year, Reinke said, as well as classics like prints from Boondocks Saints and Goodfellas.
“Guys love the gangster stuff,” Reinke said, with a laugh.
The selection of posters include just about everything: Photographs of the Eiffel Tower, Quotes from Albert Einstein and Bob Marley, a list of beer pong rules and a full cast photo of the Scranton-based TV series The Office.
Some classics never go out of style, Reinke said. Prints of Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn have consistently sold well.
Another all-time best-seller is posters from the 1978 comedy Animal House. John Belushi is perfect for a frat house in 1992 or 2012, no?
I remember going to the event my freshman year. I probably spent more than 30 minutes grazing through the aisles, amazed at the selection. For most of the summer, I looked at flea markets and old record shops searching for posters to decorate my East Halls dorm with—without much luck—and here they were all in one place.
I ended up walking away with a huge Bruce Springsteen Born in the USA print—an homage to my Jersey roots—which I got great use out of until I accidentally ripped it during move out of sophomore year.
I also bought an Andy Warhol print of the Brooklyn Bridge, which still hangs in my apartment.
What did you hang on your dorm room or apartment walls at Penn State?
Emily Kaplan, intern
A Town Hall Session on the Scandal
Patrick Mansell took this photo for Penn State Live.
The most dramatic moment happened almost an hour into Tuesday night’s Town Hall Forum, in which President Rodney Erickson and seven other top University officials took questions from Penn State students.
Students had never before had such an opportunity—not in “the history of the whole university,” student government president TJ Bard stressed in his introduction—and the ones who came took it seriously. They pressed for assurances that the Sandusky scandal would not affect their internship or job prospects, wondered why no undergraduate students were named to the special investigations task force appointed by the Board of Trustees, and asked whether Penn State’s commitment to transparency would include reassessing its exemption from Pennsylvania’s open-records law.
Then a woman stood up and said she not only had a question, but that she wanted to tell the eight administrators on the stage how she felt: “I don’t know if all of you feel this way, but Jerry Sandusky is part of the Penn State family. And I feel shame.”
The room fell silent, broken by one loud clap of approval. Then the woman added, softly, “What do I do with these feelings?”
More silence. And suddenly, the forum took on a different feel. It wasn’t about who may have done what or how things should have been handled or what the University is doing to recover from this, but about the emotions that Penn Staters have been coping with over the past 27 days.
The officials rallied. Hank Foley ’82g, vice president for research and dean of the graduate school didn’t even wait for the microphone before he said, “Acknowledge them.” Once he got the mic, he added, “We have to acknowledge them, recognize how how you feel. And admittedly, a lot of us feel some of the same feelings. There’s nothing wrong with feeling like that. At all. And there’s nothing wrong with expressing that, either. I think it’s completely understandable.” (more…)
RAINN Campaign Edges Closer to $500,000
Like everything else in the past two weeks, things at Proud to be a Penn Stater have been moving at warp speed.
Since its launch on Nov. 10, the grassroots group founded by a handful of Penn Staters has raised more than $463,000 for RAINN, the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network—and earned plenty of media coverage in the process.
Co-founder Larena Lettow ’98 appeared on CNN’s American Morning last Thursday, and MSNBC, Huffington Post, Time, and a handful of blogs (including ours) have covered the group’s fundraising efforts. Proud to be a Penn Stater has a goal of raising $500,000 for RAINN by Thanksgiving.
There are some new ways to help: T-shirts with the phrase “[Still] Proud to be a Penn Stater” are available for $18, with proceeds going directly to RAINN, and cell phone users can text PSU4RAINN to 20222 to make an automatic $10 donation.
Funds raised will support RAINN’s Online Hotline, which provides free support for victims of sexual abuse. The hotline has seen a 54 percent increase in calls since news of the Sandusky scandal broke two weeks ago.
Mary Murphy, associate editor
Trustees Tap Former FBI Director Louis Freeh
Former FBI director Louis Freeh will lead an investigation of Penn State’s role in the Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal. Ken Frazier ’75, who is chairing the investigative committee appointed by the Board of Trustees, announced at a news conference this morning that Freeh has been brought in.
The Trustees originally said on Nov. 11 that they would create a special investigation committee to “undertake a full and complete investigation of the circumstances that gave rise to the grand jury report [on alleged sexual assaults committed on children by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky ’66, ’71g].
“The committee will be commissioned to determine what failures occurred, who is responsible and what measures are necessary to ensure that this never happens again,” according to a news release.
But some people have argued that an internal committee of the Trustees can’t be counted on to do a thorough and unflinching investigation of the University. And last Friday, the University Faculty Senate passed a resolution requesting that “there be an independent special committee whose chair and the majority of whose members have never been affiliated with Penn State.”
The decision to hire Freeh (and others in Freeh’s law firm) apparently is an effort to bring in some of the independence and outside perspective that the Faculty Senate and others have asked for. Freeh served as FBI director from 1993–2001; in his career he’s also been a U.S. Attorney, a federal district court judge, and an FBI agent. He has no known Penn State ties.
The members of the trustees’ investigative committee were also announced this morning; they include six trustees, the chair of the Faculty Senate, a doctoral student in higher education (Rodney Hughes, a former student member of the Board of Trustees), and Penn State Distinguished Alumnus and former astronaut Guion Bluford ’64. You can read more about that, as well as the full text of Frazier’s and Freeh’s prepared remarks this morning, in this news release from Penn State.
Tina Hay, editor
A Classy Gesture from Ohio State
Retired Penn State faculty member Lou Prato ’59 passes along this email that was sent by five student leaders at Ohio State to member of the Buckeye student body. I just love the message of sportsmanship here:
It is important to remember that neither the athletes nor students of Penn State played a role in these alleged crimes, and that their university has been just as shocked and horrified by the news as we have — they are a proud community and they love their school just as much as we love ours.
And:
…we will remember the victims first, but also keep in mind that our visitors are not the people to whom we should direct our anger.
Below is the email in its entirety. Click on it to get a larger, more readable version.
Tina Hay, editor
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