February 20, 2019
Love was in the air at St. John’s University as alumni couples returned to alma mater as part of the annual Blessing of the Couples celebration. The event, held on February 16 in St. Thomas More Church on the Queens, NY, campus, and always timed near Valentine’s Day, is an opportunity for St. John’s to honor special couples who have remained faithful not only to each other, but to the Vincentian values they learned at the University.
More than 130 people attended the special Mass and ceremony. During his welcoming remarks, Conrado “Bobby” Gempesaw, Ph.D., President of St. John’s, focused on two words: love and honor. “When all of you met at St. John’s, you fell in love,” Dr. Gempesaw said. “That love has grown over the years, and over the decades, and you honored your commitment to your spouse when you got married.”
Marriage is falling in love many times with the same person, Dr. Gempesaw explained. “Your presence here also sends a strong message for your love of St. John’s. You honor us by celebrating those exciting years of your lives when you were here as students.”
The principal celebrant at Mass was Rev. Bernard M. Tracey, C.M., Executive Vice President for Mission. “Tonight, we want to celebrate you because of that commitment you have made, and continue to live out in your lives, as a married couple, as parents, as givers of life. We congratulate you for being faithful to one another” and “for being faithful to the values this University holds so true.”
“What makes this evening so special is the love that our alumni couples share with each other, and the continued love that we all have for St. John’s,” observed Christian P. Vaupel, Ed.D., Vice President for Advancement and University Relations, who served as master of ceremonies for the awards presentation. “It is obvious your lives have taken you on individual journeys, down many roads since your student days, but for each of you tonight, those roads all led back to alma mater.”
Honorees this year included
- John Francis Farmer, Esq. ’76C, ’80L and Linda M. Farmer ’77SVC
- James J. Fenton II ’90CBA and Lourdes Gonzales Fenton ’89SVC
- Steven G. Gallagher ’92CBA and Maria A. Gallagher, D.C. ’99C
During Mass, the alumni couples were asked by Fr. Tracey to turn and face one another and renew the commitment that they made on their wedding day. At the conclusion of Mass, the honoree couples were presented with the Fidelitas Award, which recognizes their devotion to each other and their loyalty to St. John’s University and its Vincentian mission.
The Farmers met while student-athletes at St. John’s—John as a member of the Men’s Basketball team, and Linda on the Women’s Tennis team.
“Fidelitas means faith to a person, cause, or belief demonstrated by continuing loyalty and support,” Mr. Farmer noted. “We are loyal to and supportive of alma mater. Of course, St. John’s is a special place for us. It was where we met and started our life together.
“It was our connection with the people we met at St. John’s and what they gave to us: an education, love, respect, confidence, opportunities to succeed, and the Christian moral and spiritual guidance we all truly need. It was, and is, the privilege of being part of a community that promotes and practices important values—Vincentian values—that has made a significant and lasting impact on us.”
Honoree James Fenton has a long family history with St. John’s. His grandfather attended the University’s original campus on Lewis Avenue in Brooklyn. His grandmother worked on the Queens campus, and his parents both attended St. John’s and met there. As a child, he spent many hours watching basketball games with his parents at Alumni Hall (now Carnesecca Arena). He met his wife, Lourdes, in the fall of 1986 after being set up by a mutual friend and classmate.
“This award recognizes alumni couples for their deep commitment to each other and love for the University,” Mr. Fenton observed. “In our case, these two are very much intertwined.” Together nearly 30 years, Mr. and Mrs. Fenton continue the tradition begun by his family of exposing their children to St. John’s Vincentian mission, as well as a love for men’s basketball.
“When Lourdes and I reflect back on our experience here, not only did we receive a solid education and Vincentian values, but St. John’s also gave us our life as we know it today: a best friend, a spouse, and four beautiful children,” Mr. Fenton stressed.
While both are alumni of St. John’s, Maria and Steven Gallagher did not meet on campus as they graduated seven years apart. “Knowing Maria spent four years on the same campus, and understood the Vincentian mission, I immediately recognized she would be a compassionate and empathetic person with an unselfish view of the world,” Mr. Gallagher said.
The Gallaghers have three children, and each day Mr. Gallagher said he reminds them of three basic principles that he learned at St. John’s: be a leader; help those who cannot help themselves; and while it is nice to be important, it is more important to be nice. He added, “Hopefully the essence of what we preach to our children is a reflection of our time at St. John’s and serves them as well as it has served us.”
After the ceremony, couples and their guests were invited to a private dinner reception in the D’Angelo Center, hosted by Dr. Gempesaw and his wife, Clavel Albay Gempesaw, Ph.D. Several expressed their gratitude to the University for hosting them throughout the years and were eager to share their St. John’s stories.
Daniel (’70UC) and Deirdre Andrews ’71UC met on the original St. John’s campus in Brooklyn. Near the end of the semester, Mrs. Andrews accidentally mailed her child psychology notebook along with a batch of Christmas cards. Horrified, she went to class and told her girlfriend what happened.
“This guy heard my story and started laughing,” she explained. It was her future husband. That moment led to them talking after class, and the rest was history.
Kevin (’00P) and Danielle Reiter ’01P are both graduates of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. “We were just talking on the way over here that so many of our friends come from St. John’s,” Mr. Reiter recalled. “We became a couple here, and many of them did as well. Roots were planted. We met a lot of folks with similar values, similar upbringings, and similar interests.”
“We have so many reasons to celebrate St. John’s and what makes it so special,” observed Mark A. Andrews, Director, Office of Alumni Relations. “This particular day celebrates perhaps the biggest reason for our alumni—their love for St. John’s and each other.”