Growing up, the fact that both of my parents went to Boston University was always present in my life. My dad took me to his favorite pizzeria, the beloved T. Anthony’s, before going to concerts at Agganis Arena. My mom would remind me that we were near BU when I gawked at the CITGO sign while driving through Boston. My dad still wears his old BU windbreaker he purchased as a student.
Most of my family went to BU – practically my mom’s entire side of the family went there at one point or another. And no, my parents did not meet at BU. They met at work. But both of my maternal grandparents went to BU too and met after they graduated. So basically, dear future husband, where you at?
When I started looking at colleges a couple years ago, I begrudgingly toured BU per my mom’s request. I always thought of it as my parents’ school, not mine, and since it was in the city, I assumed I wouldn’t like it. But… the opposite happened. I loved it and it quickly rose to the top of my list of potential colleges.
The best part of it all was that my parents in no way pressured me to attend BU (besides my mom insisting that I take a tour). At one point when deciding which school to go to, I had to ask my parents if they didn’t want me to go to BU for some weird reason. In reality, they were just trying to remain impartial and make me think about my other options.
Going to BU means that I constantly hear stories from all my relatives’ glory days. I adore listening to my mom’s stories of her shenanigans with her friends when she lived in Warren Towers (hey, 1517C). My grandmother actually met her lifelong best friend in the registration line on her first day at BU. My grandfather was even a geology professor who helped develop the idea of the College of General Studies.
My mom and her friends “reindeer dancing” in their Warren Towers dorm room.
When my parents visit the campus, it’s a series of “that parking lot used to be a Burger King,” and “they built a building over the parking lot where I graduated!” Hearing about how much BU has changed while simultaneously staying the same is so fun.
For example, it took my parents a while to understand that when I mentioned “Warren” I was referring to the dorm that they know as “700.” The same goes for the College of Communication, which nowadays we call “COM” but my mom always knew as “SPC,” which stood for the School of Public Communication.
Yes, my mom also studied in COM or SPC or whatever you want to call it. She was one of the cool film and TV majors. The building is still the same. Once, when she came to visit, she showed me the office where she worked in COM and proceeded to direct me to the student lounge.
My mom and her friends fooling around in the hallway of their Warren Towers floor.
Also, did you know there was a diner car and a movie theater on Cummington Mall? Hello? Bring them back, BU!
I love to pass these stories along to my friends. I tell them how the same two men (shoutout to Joe and Steve) still own T. Anthony’s, how my parents always ate at Sol Azteca when they lived in their Beacon Street apartment as newlyweds, and how students protested the COM fountain when it was installed by putting bubbles in it.
Photo credit: Robin Kallfelz
My parents were also frequent flyers at The Paradise, where we still go to concerts to this day. My dad also often bought bleacher seats at Red Sox games for $3.
Buying BU gear for my family is always fun because I know that they aren’t just repping my school, but they’re also repping theirs. Now, every year when Christmas time rolls around, we hang up two BU ornaments side by side – my mom’s from nearly 30 years ago and my new one I purchased last year.
I am extremely proud to go to BU and carry on the family legacy. I was born a Terrier. I’m meant to be here.
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