Hanover Memories
Fond Hanover Memories
In each edition of @Hanover, we ask alumni to submit their favorite Hanover memory. Here is the memory recently submitted by Ruth Adair Lambert '56. We hope his story will inspire you to send us your own special moments. We'll be sure to post them in the next edition of this e-newsletter. You can send your Hanover Memories to guthrie@hanover.edu.
Coming from a large high school in the Bronx, Hanover endeared itself to me from the moment I arrived on the beautiful campus and met the friendly students and faculty. It was fun living in the old Point House - co-ed way back then! My most precious memories, however, are of being in plays directed by Dr. Don Watters. I auditioned for "Light Up the Sky" that first autumn, had a leading role and went on to major in drama and speech and be involved in almost every production from then on.
Dr. Watters was an amazing director/producer/teacher/mentor. There were other wonderful professors and courses, fellow students and romances, and they still burn bright from where I now live in faraway western Australia. Thanks for the memories Hanover.
Ruth Adair Lambert '56
A vivid memory is a double-date hike in Clifty State Park one spring. Four of us were walking in the valley when we heard what sounded like distant thunder. It got louder. Suddenly it was a roaring, ground-shaking avalanche. Rocks the size of garages came tumbling down the hillside. Trees sheared off at their bases and hurled to the creek. Others splintered as if giant hands twenty feet apart had twisted them into toothpicks. Stones of all sizes rushed down a 100-yard wide front, wiping everything in their path. The four of us stood rooted a few feet away, unable to move. It just missed us.
Eventually the slide dwindled to a little gravel ... then silence. We stood like deer in headlights, wondering what section of cliff would give way next. Then we got out.
To my knowledge, no one else saw the avalanche. No one on campus seemed to know about it ... I never read anything in the papers. But we witnessed geological history. Apparently, a winter freeze fractured the cliff. I no longer remember who my companions were.
Dick Rogers '58
I remember fondly the hours spent at The Cabin, which was the main entertainment place on campus. Goldie would greet all the students and she knew almost everyone by name. I also remember falling in love for the first time with a beautiful blond girl that I met at a freshman dance and the hours we spent at The Cabin or parked in the moonlight at The Point. Love didn't last since a Beta stole her away, but the fond memories last along with millions of other Hanover memories. Thank you Hanover for those memories!
Dwight Adams '65
I was not the best athlete but I still participated in field hockey and basketball. It was a common sight for Dr. Horner, Dr. Totten, and others to come to our games and cheer us on from the sidelines. As I walked across the stage at graduation to accept my diploma, Dr. Horner stopped and said "Berta, from the looks of that sunburned nose, you've been out playing tennis again haven't you?" Ask your friends how many college presidents knew their names! Hours spent studying – many; friendships made – numerous; a college president who knows your name – priceless.
Berta Fahey Sipe '74
As an athlete, I worked at the football games parking cars. I was told under no uncertain terms to let any car into the parking lot that did not have a certain sticker. Along came a car with no sticker. I would not allow the car to park. This car turned around and left the lot. The following Monday, I was called into the basketball office where Coach Collier asked me about turning away that particular car. Turns out that it belonged to Dr. Horner. Dr. Horner was gracious enough to call Coach Collier and commend me for following the rules!
Mike Sipe '75
One of the more interesting events during my four years was the outbreak of measles during the week prior to the spring break in my sophomore or junior year. Someone went to the health clinic with a severe rash. The nurse diagnosed it as measles and put him in isolation. However, the word got around that this male was in the clinic with measles. One of the fraternities concocted the scheme to make the measles very contagious. They used brushes to make red marks on their skin and go to the clinic, which soon became full. These very contagious measles began to spread throughout the campus from fraternity houses to sorority houses and to dorms. The College notified the Jefferson county health department and after determining the severity of this epidemic, decided to evacuate the campus. Thus, spring break started about three or four days early. Seldom did anyone discuss the contrivance, as no one wanted to admit to the deception and the college officials did not wish to appear so easily duped.
Janice Hardy Stanley '59
"Thank you for the e-mail news and views (of the past). Here is one of my favorite memories, which I believe is as valid now as it was when I was a student at Hanover. That is the memory of walking on the snow-covered campus at night, with a full moon beaming down on the campus and illuminating the Ohio River and the hills of Kentucky across the way. The lights on campus provided just enough glow to create a magical scene, and the golden river gave a sensation of what a bit of heaven might be like. Of course, we did not really walk; rather, we moseyed, stopping often to taste the snow, make a snowball, or just take in the magnificent view. Those, to me, were truly magical moments, thanks to Mother Nature! Keep up the good work!
Dr. Robert E. Wolverton '48
"On November 22, 1963, The Triangle had the distinction of being one of the first newspapers on the street and the first newspaper to reach campus with a banner headline story reporting the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The decision to "hold the presses" and write the story directly from radio and television reports is remarkable to this day for its accuracy, timely publication and speedy distribution. The issue circulated on campus that evening."
Ron Hammerle '64
"My most outstanding memory of Hanover is April 3, 1974. But my most inspiring memory of Hanover is of April 4, 1974. We had just been through the tornado. We were scared, deserted, and desperate. Dr. Horner got us together and gave a speech that totally got us going. We had just been through a night of horror — I was in the Phi Mu house, which was literally cut in half. We were terrified and we couldn't contact our parents or anything. Dr. Horner got up there and spoke to us, and inspired us. We went out afterward and tried to help faculty members whose homes had been destroyed. We pulled together as a community, and we got through it. I seriously think a lesser man might not have pulled us through that. Dr. Horner was kind, calm, and reassuring."
Sherry Mason '75
"Some of my most vivid Hanover memories involve the friendships that my classmates and I developed with one another; and, no bonds of friendship were stronger than those between me and my fraternity brothers of Beta Theta Pi. However, some of my best memories probably occurred during pledgeship. I can't divulge all of the things that we did, (something about an oath of secrecy), but, the challenges of the active fraternity brothers vs. the responses by my pledge class were the sort of things that would have made the producers of National Lampoon's "Animal House" shake their heads in disbelief. Whether it was scrounging for corncobs and tobacco sticks to make torches for a moonlight ceremony at the Beta Rock, or hiding every clean pair of pants that the actives owned elsewhere on campus for two weeks, our pledge class made an indelible impression on the actives. We bonded as only a team engaged in some sort of "friendly competition" can do. The small number of students at Hanover naturally lent itself to building some lifelong relationships with fellow classmates, and the picturesque quality of the campus made it impossible to have a "bad time" in such a beautiful setting. Whether it was hiking in the woods along steep slopes, waterways, and waterfalls, discovering historical landmarks in the area, or simply sitting on the point watching the Ohio River while contemplating the meaning of life and our own role in the universe, Hanover was a great place to spend four years as a young adult. The lessons taught in the classroom were great, and they have served most of us very well in life. But, the life lessons learned on campus from one another have been far more valuable to nearly all of us."
Carl Sharp '81
"My first Hanover memory is of visiting my older sister while she was a student at HC. I was only six at the time. The one thing I remember was going to the library. I was in awe as I walked in and saw the curving staircase and soaring ceiling. I thought it was beautiful and marvelous - and so big! It made a lasting impression — I wanted to go to Hanover College from that day on. There were to be no other options. I knew it was a special place. The library had a "glowing" globe for goodness sake! I did end up at Hanover, with that same sister taking me on my first day. Amazingly, as freshman, we were both in Ide hall (for upper classmen) and I was in the room directly under hers. We even found her name still carved into the doorjamb of her room. Driving through the woods and onto campus was a magical moment for me ... a highly anticipated new chapter in my life. Hanover College did not disappoint me. Too many other memories would probably not make it online, but I sure did have a great time! I still miss it."
Julia Davis Skillern '95
"My favorite event was the tea for the incoming freshmen. It was quite the dressy affair. I can still see all the white, pastel, flowery dresses, accompanied by hats and white gloves. In addition, there was an assignment I loved, given by Dr. Robert Fox. We journaled (about) our days at Hanover. I recall walking across the campus in the fall, seeing the varicolored leaves on the green carpet and wondering how I could possibly catch the beauty I was seeing and translate it into words. I wish I still had that journal so I could compare that young maiden to the woman I've become."
Phyllis Ann Rose Searcy '64
"One of my favorite memories was the beautiful songfest the Beta's performed for our pin serenade when my husband-to-be (Ken Cozier '58) and I stood on the porch of Donner Hall."
Jane Glossbrenner Cozier '59
"My father, James M. McKeand '27, majored in both math and chemistry and was a talented mile-runner for the College. For one of his classes, he had to survey the layout for a road to surround the campus going out around OLD Classic Hall. He told me the story and walked me around the course while I was a student at Hanover from 1962-1966. The total length of the road was exactly one mile (very useful for him and his fellow runners) and it happened to follow the shape of Indiana. Since the construction of Science Hall, the original path has been changed and lengthened. When at the steps near the point you would theoretically be at Evansville on the Indiana map; when moving around to the brick home once occupied by Dr. Parker, you are at Cincinnati. The best way to see the similarity between the Indiana map and the road around the campus is to look at an aerial view or a campus map."
Emily McKeand Campbell '66
