Our connection started strong.
As a student I worked in the alumni office. While working my first reunion, I met Don -- recent graduate and member of the alumni board. I worked in this office for most of my college years, only leaving to work at an internship my senior year.
Upon gradation, I became a board member.
So far so good.
Then the president of my alma mater held a secret meeting in my office's board room. See, the president of the company where I worked right out of college was on the Board of Trustees. In the meeting, held a couple of doors away from my desk, the board decided to change the name of my school from Trenton State College to The College of New Jersey.
As far as decisions go, it was not the worst decision. Thirty years later, it is still the name of the school. It was the secrecy behind it that irritated me. As I type this, I realize it still irritates me. Another board member, a friend of mine, learned about the decision when he opened his newspaper. My hearing about it was not much better -- my sister, a student there at the time, sent me an email the students all received.
The Board of Trustees did not tell the Alumni Board about the decision in advance.
Had I simply been a new alumna it would not have bothered me, but since I was on the Alumni Board I though we merited advance notice.
We live only a few miles from TSC/TCNJ. I have visited the campus. I even went on a new student tour with Ashley, and a partial tour when Yoran lived with us. In 2022, I attended the reunion with my college fraternity members. We've been back for smaller reasons, including recreating our wedding anniversary pictures. This weekend was my first off-campus event.
The alumni office sponsored a Stage and Spirits event to see "She Loves Me" at Bucks County Playhouse. As luck would have it, Ashley was in the deck crew for the show. I had dinner with Ashley at an Indian restaurant between the matinee and evening performances, then walked over the Nektar to enjoy a glass of wine with the others.
TSC alumna is not a hat I wear very often. It was a little uncomfortable. I did not know any of the other 26 attendees huddled around the bar, most everyone seemed to be with a spouse or friend. One woman said the timing was great because she was cast to be in a production in Burlington this November. A couple from my class said they were excited for a night out -- they have two in college and one in high school, this was a rare treat for them.
Things like remembering the dorms I lived in, the professors I had, the activities I did, and the inevitable do you remember.... All asked as we crowded around a bar. Everyone was friendly. Conversations were mostly light. Most people are happy to talk about themselves with very little prompting. The reporter in me finds ways to shift the conversation in that direction.
We took a group photo in front of the theater and enjoyed the show.
For me, the biggest treat was spending time with Ashley.
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