Distant replay
Thanks to Ed Cohen (“Midfielders passing in the night,” Winter 2000-01) for his nostalgic depiction of RecSports soccer. I was the goalkeeper on a law student team that won the faculty-staff-grad tournament at the expense of a previous incarnation of the Illegitimate Sons of Pele. I felt like the author was narrating my own game from several years ago. I can still see the incredulous looks on the faces of those Illegit Sons after they lost to us. It was quite an upset and we were just as stunned at the result. A series of fortuitous forfeits had helped put us through to the championship game that year.
We also won by an identical 1-0 score on an equally cold night at the Stepan fields. We had our share of good athletes (keeper excluded) and our ranks also had a multinational cast. And we had a female player who was not adverse to exposing her sports bra. The victory celebrations under the lights were identical; I even recognized some of the players in the picture. More importantly, our memories of fun, fellowship and learning are just as bright as those of the writer.
So cheers to all those teams who over the years sweated and froze on the Stepan tundra kicking the same black and white ball that so many millions have kicked around the world.
Scott Moran ’90, ’97J.D.
Atlanta, Georgia
Common ground?
I believe many would support the voice of protest in the balcony shouting “What about abortion?” during Senator Joseph Lieberman’s appearance in Washington Hall (“Lieberman: Religious values vital to U.S.”). A more basic question, however: Why was Lieberman invited to speak at all? Lieberman reportedly said that the common origins of Americans’ faith should build the goodwill necessary to allow people to “disagree without being divisive and . . . ultimately reach for common ground.”
But Lieberman’s “common ground” is radically pro-abortion as he has demonstrated on numerous occasions. Twice, when the U.S. Senate passed a ban on barbaric partial birth abortions (both of which were vetoed by President Clinton), Lieberman not only voted against the original bills but also voted against a Senate vote to override the President’s vetoes. More recently he spoke against and voted against the confirmation of John Ashcroft, a pro-life supporter, for attorney general.
Lieberman’s statements about common ground have never extended past political expediency when he has been asked to choose between religious beliefs and his political career. I regret that the University invites to campus speakers who are so adamantly pro-abortion. This creates the impression that the University finds such viewpoints morally acceptable.
Joseph M. Coleman ’51
Niantic, Connecticut
Sparky and Morrissey’s Dirty Thirty
I read with interest about the change in University policy allowing rectors to keep pets in the residence halls (“Tails of rector assistants”). In fall 1965 I lived in the basement of Morrissey Hall (a very enviable campus location since there was no R.A. and escape was readily available through the windows after signing in, with the guard in the hall’s lobby). It was at this time that the infamous “Dirty Thirty” was formed, of which I am an original member (although not a founding member because I was a junior at the time and the basement was ruled by seniors).
In spite of the fact that the University had a very strict prohibition regarding pets, the Dirty Thirty mascot, “Sparky,” resided in the basement from fall 1965 until the summer 1967, and added a very homey feeling to our space in Morrissey. Sparky was well known on campus, even Father Hesburgh regularly greeted Sparky on walks around campus. Sparky was also very popular at Saint Mary’s College, as we would occasionally loan him to other guys for a walk across the road to enhance their ability to get a date.
Jim Barry ’67
Saint Louis, Missouri
Class notes connection
In early 1992, after spending a year as a volunteer in Belfast, I returned to Chicago and sent information about my experience to Kathy Doyle, the 1985 class secretary. When her column appeared that spring in the magazine, I noticed another item of interest to me: Bob Marovich ’85 and his wife, Pat Andrews Marovich (SMC ’82) had vacationed in Ireland and were at the same Irish music festival in County Clare that I had attended and they lived in Oak Park, a suburb of Chicago. Because of our apparent common interest in things Irish, I planned to call them. Before I could track down a phone number Bob called me. Soon he and Pat and I were fast friends, attending Irish music sessions around the city, with Bob and me drinking Guinness while Pat preferred whiskey.
In October 1992 Pat discovered she had breast cancer. Despite the ups and downs of her illness, she continued teaching music to disadvantaged children, voraciously reading books, attending concerts of all kinds, and making everyone around her laugh with her offbeat sense of humor. As one of her sisters said, she seemed to squeeze life even harder.
With her hallmark determination, Pat told me she planned to celebrate her 80th birthday one day. Sadly, she made it only halfway there. She died peacefully at home on December 7 at age 40, with Bob and her family at her side. Losing a dear friend is painful, but I came close to not knowing her at all. Thank you for bringing us together.
Megan Fellman ’85
Chicago