According to Anne Lee, adjunct professor of journalism and mass communication, friendships formed at Bonaventure last for a lifetime.
“You can’t get rid of them,” she said, smiling.
And that’s certainly the case for Anne, who met and married one of her Bonaventure friends, assistant professor of journalism and mass communication and director of the Integrated Marketing Communications Program, Richard Lee, Ph.D.
The two met while at a movie with some mutual friends.
“I remember he smiled a lot,” said Anne.
Friendships aren’t the only thing the Lees have vivid memories of.
They said The Hickey Dining Hall was a lot more limited in options than it is now.
“You would bring a tray through, and there would usually only be two choices,” said Rich.
Sometimes students didn’t even have different food options.
“Every once in a while, there would only be one meal choice,” said Anne. “When it was roast beef, I hated their roast beef—it didn’t taste like the Beef ‘n’ Barrel’s.”
The Hickey used to hold a French night once a semester. According to Anne, students would receive a piece of filet mignon, a crab claw and a bottle of Lancers wine (for students 18 and older).
The Rathskeller used to serve as a popular hangout spot for students. The Lees said it offered pizza and subs, and students would go there at night to hang out, drink and play games.
“The first time I saw a video game was in the Skeller. They had Foosball and Skeeball,” said Rich.
He also added that since the drinking age was 18, many people went to the Skeller to drink.
The couple has remained close with many of their college friends.
“One of the things I’ve noticed is the students seem the same,” said Rich. “I could imagine our friends, if you could magically transport them here today, or vice versa, fitting in—it’s the same type of people.”
Anne said a friend of theirs, Mark, refers to them as “the Bonnies,” a term that always seems to confuse people. On a Saturday in July, the Lees went to visit Mark, and within seconds of walking through the door, Mark’s children started crying.
“He told them the Bonnie’s were coming—they thought they were getting bunnies,” said Anne. “That was really funny.”
While friends have stayed the same, the laundry situation at Bona’s has changed a lot, said the Lees.
The Lees said there used to be one laundry room, close to where the Merton Center is today, that every student on campus had to share.
“The dryers were a dime, and the washing machines were a quarter,” said Anne Lee.
She said sometimes she wouldn’t have any change to do laundry, but that wasn’t really a problem.
“The heaters in Rob-Fal were so hot you could wash your jeans in the sink and put a wet leg of the jeans on the heater, and in 20 minutes, one side would be dry.”
The years have come and gone, but the Bona spirit has remained the same, the Lees said.
“It’s amazing what a Bonnie will do for another Bonnie,” Anne said.
This is the first installment in the “Professors from Bonaventure” series. Check out future issues for more!
kolbee14@bonaventure.edu
