125 Things We Love About GU
The two glowing crosses just off I-90. The brick pathways. Late night cramming in Foley Center, snowball fights on the quad, philosophical discussions in the COG. And community, that vague word that means something so very tangible.
There are so many reasons to love this place, one couldn’t possibly count them all. But why not try?
A year ago, we began asking “What do you love about Gonzaga?” We asked parents and students. We asked faculty and alumni. We asked until we were blue in the face – appropriately, given Gonzaga’s school color. We figured, quite honestly, that certain answers would show up over and over. To some extent they did. But the level of insight and personal observation that you will find in this collection will – we guarantee it – remind you of what made your own Gonzaga experience unforgettable.
In celebration of 125 years of living and learning, here are 125 reasons to love GU!
1. “I love that every person I talk with about Gonzaga has had their own unique experience… yet all seem to share the same deep affection and camaraderie. I love that the love and appreciation for the Gonzaga experience becomes part of who we are and stays with us long after we have graduated.” Judi Sposito ’96
2. CCASL
3. Knights and Setons
4. Madonnastock
5. Mission:Possible
6. Free cookies in the dorms for finals week.
7. Music blasting from DeSmet all day.
8. Packies, former burger place on corner of Standard and Sharp.
9. Chad’s, former quick stop grocery where Starbucks and the Ultimate Bagel are today.
10. Having a beer at Jack and Dan’s or The Bulldog with your professor.
11. “I love the values that it’s built on: the Catholic faith, the fact that its origins are tied to the American Indians and the ideals of making the world a better place.” Helen Mary Roach ’14
12. “Late Night Breakfast in the COG.” Melanie Grant ’13
13. Bozarth Mansion and all the retreats that go on there.
14. “The thing I love most about Gonzaga is what I hated when I was a student – that Mike Herzog made me take freshman composition even though I had two ways of being waived out of that class – and he made me take it from Tony Wadden. I got into a highly ranked law school, got a clerkship with a justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court and have had a successful legal career, in large measure because my adviser was such a jerk, or so I thought. I also love the fact that my kid is a Zag, class of 2014.” Chuck Lloyd ’83
15. “I love the fact that on my first day of being a transfer student at GU, random people on campus passed by me and smiled or said hello. Gonzaga is the most friendly and welcoming community – a community that stays with you long after graduation.” Kristen Paul ’07
16. Great discussions in Jeff Miller’s class, where you learn to really care about the books you’re reading and have fun reading them.
17. “I LOVE the fourth floor of the Administration Building, particularly the journalism and Bulletin editing rooms. I spent many a late night writing for and editing the Bulletin.” Robyn (Davis) Lockett ’01
18. “I love the people. Everyone is always smiling.” Jackson Bates ’14
19. “The opportunities that students have to get involved with things that aren’t their major, like an engineering major doing theatre.” Hannah Wentz ’13
20. Pizza and hot cocoa with the team in Tent City.
21. “Next to the alumni house and across from Cushing, there are these little white flowers that smell really good. They plant them by the Music Mansion too.” Adam Nekimken ’13
22. “Camping out to be in the second row of the Kennel.”Kim Toomey ’07
23. Margie and the Tilford Café.
24. When the baristas in Crosby remember your order.
25. Courtney Vandersloot and John Stockton, two of the greatest point guards in history: humble, fiercely competitive, extraordinary vision. Zags.
26. Using the St. Al’s crosses as a GPS.
27. Living in Twohy and making really good friends.
28. “The people! I have an awesome network of GU friends and former professors around the country.” Brittany Wilmes ’09
29. “When things got a little crazy on campus, I loved to walk over to Mission Park. It was just a couple blocks away, but once I was there, it was like campus was far away. I would swing on the swings or just sit under a tree and study.” Diane Erickson ’71
30. Student presentations at the annual Spokane Intercollegiate Research Conference.
31. “Gonzaga gave me an incredible education and embraces diversity.” BJ Bolich ’95
32. Running on the Centennial Trail.
33. “Sunny days when everyone’s out on the quad playing games and enjoying the weather.” Katy Schubert ’10
34. Fr. Coughlin, a friend, a compassionate priest.
35. Our groundskeepers – always working hard, whether it’s planting flowers, pruning trees, picking up leaves or blowing snow. They do it all.
36. Mark Few helping Zags win basketball games one day, playing flag football with his kids on Mulligan Field on another. What people don’t see is his tremendous care for those encumbered by cancer and disability.
37. Harry Sladich always called on your birthday. He truly cared about GU and its people, and was a very proud alumnus and faithful servant to Gonzaga for 46 years.
38. April’s Angels… “I volunteered for this and it was great. I have continued the tradition in DC with the Alumni Chapter in our nation’s capital.” David Uhl ’05
39. A group of students teaches storytelling to women at St. Margaret’s Shelter, helping them shape their tales into interview-worthy stories to help them find employment.
40. The view over Spokane from the Jundt Art Center.
41. Sister Phyllis Taufen, a guardian of the English language.
42. “I absolutely love Jane Rinehart. She presented interesting ideas and theories regarding gender roles in society. I can thank Andrea Bertotti Metoyer for making me into the feminist I am today.” Emily Beck ’13
43. “I love the sign in Herak that says ‘Do Not Tap the Glass: It Disturbs the Engineers.’” Nicole Crapps ’12
44. Pilgrimage, especially ending at Cataldo Mission in Idaho.
45. “The emphasis on transformative learning and equipping learners to serve the world with their gifts. My time at Gonzaga continues to encourage me in my research, vocation, and relationships.” Dena Rosko ’11 MACOML
46. “The Huetter Mansion as the Alumni House.” Rol Herriges ’57
47. “I love that when you’re going in a building people will hold the door and greet you, even when they don’t know you.” Erin Hecht ’15
48. Any ZAG who leaves it all out there on the court or field.
49. “GUSR plays.” Corinne Buchanan ’10
50. “Kim Weber. She’s had the most real-life approach with her students that I’ve experienced, both in and out of class, that I think prepares us to be a capable teachers and better citizens.” Michaela Jones ’13
51. “I love that we’re here by invitation. The Jesuits were invited to Spokane, we didn’t come as conquerors, and we’re still a part of that community.” Fr. C. Hightower, S.J.
52. The Wall with its multi-layers of paint.
53. Kelly Graves turned around GU’s women’s basketball program, but he also puts huge effort into decorating his garage for a haunted house at Halloween. He digs it…and he’s scary.
54. The Cowles Rare Books Room on the top floor of Foley.
55. Aluminum Jesus.
56. “I love the dance program at Gonzaga. Whether I enter the dance studio feeling overwhelmed, stressed out, angry, sad, happy, confused, or somewhere in between, I always leave with a refreshed perspective on my life. Dance is good for the soul.” Ariel Wood ’13
57. The bells of St. Al’s at 6 p.m.
58. “Teachers come here to teach, not to do research.” Thomas Bryan ’13
59. The Old Kennel where the Zags always played blue-collar basketball; kids could run around the back of the bleachers and it was easy to find a ticket.
60. The Johnston Family Mall, which really brought our campus together.
61. Sister Laura Michels, always good for a loving hug.
62. “I love our cultural clubs. Black Student Union, HPIC, La Raza, and FASU put on so many great events and are a great way to meet new people and learn to appreciate diversity. Our cultural clubs welcome new members graciously, no matter what your background is.” Myra Questel ‘14
63. Winning an intramural Championship shirt.
64. “That we still have a 24 hour, 365 day a year switchboard.” Lori Leonard
65. The spiritual Exercises
66. Gel Weekend
67. COG brunch
68. The Rogues Gallery
69. “I love that Gonzaga University doesn’t just hand you a degree and wish you well in pursuing a career. The Career Center helps students with resumes, interview skills, finding jobs, etc. and the GAMP Trek program has been building strong relationships and business networks in key cities to help GU grads find gainful employment after graduation.” Dena Horton ’95
70. “The Medley” by Big Bing Theory.
71. Marty Pujolar – Our great 25-year alumni director.
72. “Gonzaga-in-Zambia and how engineers can take part in interdisciplinary, service-based/project-based learning programs as a way to develop a more holistic way of thinking.” Alex Maxwell ’09
73. “I love how there are a ton of masses here every day and it’s really organized around students. I’ve always found church really boring but I haven’t missed a Sunday yet.” Grace Armstrong ’15
74. “Driving up and down Boone Avenue past the Administration Building.” Tony Lucarelli ’83
75. The Chihuly glass in the Jundt Art Museum.
76. “One of the things I love about Gonzaga is the location near the Spokane River. I loved going to the grassy field near the art building in late spring when the temperatures started to warm up. People would lay out beach towels and catch some rays the first day the thermometer broke 60 degrees.” Maureen Braley ’01
77. “Chicken nugget day at the COG.” Katy Schubert ’10
78. “I love how close it is to downtown. I go just about every weekend.” Tabitha Lovell ’15
79. “Aditya Simha and Tony Andenoro, two faculty I’ve never taken a class from, but when I needed help with statistical analysis
they gave of their precious time and taught me so much.” Joann Waite ’12 Ph.D.
80. “I love that such a small school has such a big presence in the world. Half of any given junior class studies abroad all over the world year after year, and all levels of programs at GU work to open exchange programs with China and
the Middle East.” Diana Ruff ’06
81. The unpretentious authenticity.
82. The sign on the College Hall third-floor faculty member’s door that hung there for years that says “Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.” I think it does a good job summarizing the care-ism of this place.
83. Rail Jam, where students and pros show off their skills on the slopes.
84. “Taking long walks though the surrounding neighborhoods on snowy evenings and returning to the dorm to finish my studies only to get talked into driving up on the South Hill to the Park Inn (aka Grannies) to get a BIG roast beef sandwich on French bread with provolone and lots of mayo.” Jim Porter ’75
85. “I love that people know my name – priests, professors, people walking around campus.” Laura Stevenson ’14
86. “I love that my boss trusts my judgment in teaching and in scholarship.” Kent Hickman, professor of finance
87. “2nd floor of Crosby couches… best place to do New York Times crossword puzzle.” Nick Krcma ’09
88. GUTS
89. Sausage Bowl
90. ROTC
91. “The phone call from the dean of students in Fall 2007 asking how our daughter was doing after she had just had an emergency appendectomy at Sacred Heart at midnight the night before we drove from Vancouver, Wash. The doctor wouldn’t wait until we arrived so she was alone at Sacred Heart.” Tanis Cottrell (mother of Samantha Cottrell ’11)
92. “Jesuit House food.” Father Tim Clancy, S.J.
93. Jen Neyman of the Special Ed department.
94. “That College Hall is unlocked on Friday nights. We played Sardines in there.” Kit Wendtland ’14
95. “The community atmosphere and how connected graduates stay after graduation.” Ryan Heyes ’09
96. “A good number of staff members who heavily invest themselves in the idea and ideals of Jesuit education and students who are just ornery enough to make faculty members better educators.” Terry Geiber, professor of art
97. “The openness that Gonzaga shows. Not just lip service, but practically. The willingness for religious understanding, harmony and dialogue.”Geshe Thupten Phelgye, Scholar in Residence
98. Vik Gumbhir, sociology professor, is all about building his students up and helping them excel.
99. “When I see a GU license plate at a stoplight, I want to get out of my car to go meet the driver because I know we’d be friends.”
Naomi Kerns ’06
100. “When Zags greet each other, they don’t shake hands; they hug.” Andrea Woods ’09
101. “Gonzaga as an organization really tries to take care of its employees. I think that’s really important and really special.”
Paula Foster, librarian
102. “GU outdoors. Exciting trips with great friends.” Jon Medler ’10
103. Father Tony Lehmann, who could make your heart smile every time you saw him.
104. “Jack and Dan’s and Star Bar.” Zach Stratton ’10
105. “The small world aspect. Everyone is interconnected in some way.” Jake Bredl ’14
106. Mass in the Grass
107. Bulldog Jog
108. Volleyball at Litz’s
109. Fr. Art Dussault, who attended my Catholic confirmation ceremony in 1989 in the student chapel, waved his cane at me afterward and said, “We got you. It took us a while, but we finally got you.”
110. “Fr. Bruno at GU in Florence – best tour guide ever!”
111. Erik Schmidt and Ted DiMaria for taking boring philosophy and making it awesome philosophy.
112. “I love when the slip ‘n slide comes out in front of DeSmet.” Katelin Eastman ’12
113. Study abroad – through Gonzaga-in-Florence, Paris, Granada and dozens of other programs.
114. Muddy Mulligan Field in the middle of January. (Update: Muddy Mulligan Field is a thing of the past. Artificial turf was installed in 2006.)
115. Campus Kids. It’s great to see our students mentoring these young fourth-sixth graders, and the way our mentors light up the little kids’ eyes.
116. “The fall sunsets that turn the sky pink and orange. When the St. Al’s crosses are lit up it’s an incredible post-card perfect image.” Kaiti Wood ’14
117. “Bob Carriker.” Mary Harnetiaux ’75
118. Steve Hertz – It is impossible to count lessons learned from this man, but one is clearly “family comes first,” our own families and this Gonzaga family.
119. Maddie the bulldog, who brings life to our mascot.
120. “Bomb Squad. It is where I met some of my best friends from college and holds most of my most memorable times at Gonzaga.” Erica Overfield ’09
121. “Being able to go into the student chapel after a hectic morning of classes and be somewhere so serene and comforting.” Stephen Barbarossa ’13
122. “The fact that the altar at St. Al’s is made from the altar rail doors salvaged after a tragic incident there decades ago. A sign to me of forgiveness, renewal and recovery.” Todd Dunfield, CCASL
123. “Everybody has their own story, their own past experiences and their own unique ambitions for the future.”
Mari Schramm ’15
124. Steve DeLong’s title as trainer of the athletic teams falls way short of his value to this place – whether it’s washing uniforms early in the morning or applying athletic tape to a blown hose in the old yellow school bus on a baseball trip to SoCal.
125. “As a non-traditional student (in my 50s when I graduated) I loved the way I was accepted by both the professors in the School of Business Administration and my fellow students.” Jim Barry ’00