A Century of Celebration

In 1972, two young men met as freshmen and roommates in Parsons Hall. As what often happens, Tom Pfizenmaier ’76 and Jeff Laveson ’76 became best friends and stayed close throughout their adult lives.

“We were talking and, even though 2026 will be our 50^th reunion, this year is 50 years of a wonderful friendship shared,” says Pfizenmaier. “And so this is the bromance trip. My daughter — she calls him Uncle Jeff, and he really is a surrogate father to her — said, ‘Oh I want to come’ and we were like, ‘We love you, but no. We’ll send you some pictures.’ ”

Marietta College celebrated its 100^th Homecoming in October, drawing nearly 600 alumni back to their alma mater. To honor the connection between the College and downtown, Alumni Engagement planned a special Paint the Town Blue theme and hosted the All Alumni Welcome on the Armory Square on Front Street. Homecoming candidates decorated storefronts in Navy Blue & White themes and many events were hosted in downtown restaurants.

Maureen Morgan ’93 and sister Beth Morgan Mattiassi ’92 spent time looking at the various Marietta-themed storefronts before meeting up with friends. Both are new members of the Marietta College Alumni Association-Council.

“When we were students, we liked going to different places like Muskingum Park to study or Wendelken’s because it had unique gifts,” Morgan says. “There was a little coffee shop, which was kind of a new thing back then, and sometimes we’d go there.”

Mattiassi says joining the alumni council has been a good experience.

At 740 Social on Front Street, a group of ’80s grads caught up with one another in the outdoor seating area. Terri Gilliam Petras ’88 and her husband, Mike Petras ’87, met up with friends, many of whom were having their 35^th reunion.

“We’ve all been friends since college and we’ve stayed friends,” Petras says. “My daughter just got married and some of the people who were at her wedding were also at my wedding.”

At the All Alumni Welcome, Mark Fazzina ’83 and Kenneth Lisko ’82 stood on the lawn of the Armory talking about their time at Marietta.

“We’ve been pals for 40-plus years,” Fazzina says. “We both played sports and the AD used to get us confused.”

“We have a lot of strong memories of Marietta,” Lisko says.

On Saturday morning, Brittany Metcalf ’13 led the 2022 Marietta College Alumni Awards Ceremony, which recognized Robert Ferguson with the Liz Tribett Service Award, Luis Garcia ’16 with the Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, Susan MacKenty Brady ’94 with the Distinguished Alumna Award, and the late Dr. Gama Perruci with the Honorary Alumni Award.

Shortly after the award ceremony, the College held a ceremony for a new historic marker that recognizes Marietta College’s and the community’s efforts to fight against slavery and assist people who were escaping it. Tony Mayle, the College’s Director of Diversity & Inclusion, and Ada Woodson Adams, a historian and activist who has spent decades preserving Black history in Southeast Ohio, both gave remarks. To commemorate student protest in 1854 against the passing of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Erwin Hall’s bell tower rang nine times. Students rang it for 90 minutes straight in 1854. The marker is located along Putnam Street, between the Admission House and McKinney Hall.

Of course, Homecoming isn’t complete without an exciting football game and tailgate. During the massive pre-game party, alumni, students and friends assembled outside Don Drumm Stadium to enjoy the sunny afternoon.

Current volleyball players manned a booth highlighting Title IX, sharing information about what Marietta Athletics is doing to learn and celebrate its impact on women’s sports.

“We’re promoting 50 years of Title IX,” says Halee Williams ’26, a member of the volleyball team. “We also want to recognize the women athletes who came before us.”

Kim Hupp Miller ’81 visited with her former coach, Debbie Lazorik near the Title IX booth.

“I was on the first volleyball team at Marietta College,” Miller says. “And she (Lazorik) was my coach.”

The game against Wilmington College turned into a routing as the Pioneers bested the Quakers 34-0. Samantha Corbett ’23 and Matthew Fouty ’23 were named Homecoming Queen and King during halftime.

Adrienne Porter Snider ’81 returned for the big weekend with her husband, Dana ’82, and met up with friend, Trish Gibson-Dennis ’82.

“Campus was beautiful 40 years ago when I was as here, but now it takes my breath away,” Snider says. “It’s good to be back.”