The University of Tampa is a great university, and is especially important to me, first of all, because that is where I met my wife, Dorinda Garcia (Davison), in classes during our freshman year.
Secondly, after our graduation ceremony in 1966, in what was then the McKay Auditorium, we were married a few hours later in a candlelight service at Hyde Park Presbyterian Church.
Since we were students who spent the full four years at UT, and earned our bachelor degrees in education there, we can accurately evaluate and say that our instructors/professors were excellent and that we received a great education there. That is my third reason for saying UT is great.
Fourthly, we also benefited from the clubs and activities at the university. From student religious organizations, music programs, art shows and galleries, there were parades and events like Gasparilla that we could participate in. Happenings in sports, shopping downtown, and going to the few movie theaters in Tampa at the time, kept us occupied, in addition to using the UT Library as a great resource for quietness and research help. The student newspaper and the student radio programs kept us informed.
The fifth and final reason that the University of Tampa is so important in my mind is that the wonderful expansion of the campus is an awesome sight to behold. Just riding through the campus gives us beautiful memories of the past and bright inspiration and hope for the future.
I attended the opening celebration of the Sykes Chapel and Center for Faith and Values on the campus. What an example of a university wanting to pull all students together from numerous religious backgrounds and acknowledge that they and all religions and backgrounds are loved and respected at this prestigious institution of higher learning.
It was easy to see that the architectural design of the look of praying hands reaching upward, took inspiration from such innovative ideas as being one of the first, if not the first university to put meaning and action into not wanting any student to feel left out and unwanted.
That is greatness! The University of Tampa President, staff, faculty, students, and the community leaders standing in support of this project, including the architects and designers, are to be commended for this very important center.
My wife, family, and I, are so proud to be a part of this growing and outstanding private university.
Yes, the University of Tampa is important, and the future will only prove it more!