By: Robert Barrington, Ad Editor
It was 6:00 p.m. Saturday, October 15, 2011, and people were gathered outside the Donald R. Tapia School of Business. Men were dressed in suits and women were wearing evening dresses and gowns, while hors d’oeuvres and drinks were being served by SLU students and staff. Everyone convened near the podium set up next to the time capsule, and awaited the Donald R. Tapia School of Business Dedication and Acknowledgement Ceremony while a string quartet could be heard playing in the background.
At 6:45 p.m. the ceremony began with David Ostrander presiding as Master of Ceremonies welcoming everyone and introducing Abbot Isaac for opening prayer. Abbot Isaac led everyone into prayer. Ostrander then introduced Sheila McDevitt who acknowledged TECO’s gift (which was the first one committed to the project), and related how it provided a challenge that brought in almost $200,000 from local and regional businesses and from TECO employees.
The next speaker was Michael Nastanski, who spoke about the impact the building will have on the Business School, and how the building is equipped with the latest technology. Students who study on campus, online, and through distance centers will benefit from the state-of-the-art technology and the easy access to learning through smaller classrooms and better communications.
As Nastanksi exited the podium, Ostrander introduced Student Government PresidentAmanda Cassar, who spoke about the contributions from the SGU, and what the new building means to the students of SLU. Cassar was followed by Hooley Keith. The crowd cheered for an extended period of time, and as one looked around, it became apparent why: There were at least two dozen young men wearing black shirts, black pants, black shoes, and sporting a red tie, screaming at the top of their lungs, members of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity, and their president had just stepped onto the podium. Keith thanked Don Tapia for his generous donation to SLU and his endowed scholarship created with the TKE Foundation, and how it will benefit TKEs at SLU for years to come. Keith also spoke about Tapia’s role as an honorary TKE, and the influence and impact he has had as a role model for the fraternity.
Ostrander stepped up to the podium and spoke about the pledge of Dr. and Mrs. Kirk and the success of their challenge to the faculty and staff. Ostrander then introduced Dr. Kirk. Kirk thanked Tapia for his generous gift and how it had, and will continue to benefit SLU. He spoke about the type of person Tapia is, and how every SLU student is positively impacted by Tapia’s gift. Kirk also spoke about the SLU vision, and then introduced Donald R. Tapia.
Tapia stepped onto the podium and was given a standing ovation. Tapia told everyone not to thank him but instead to thank God for making it all possible. He thanked everyone for their kindness, and told everyone that credit should not be given to him, but to give credit to the faculty and staff of SLU for bringing the students the best education and the latest state-of-the-art technology. Tapia continued to thank SLU and spoke about the educational opportunities available at SLU. As Tapia stepped off the podium, he was given another standing ovation.
Bishop Lynch stepped up the podium and talked about the blessing of the building, and joked about how the contractors must be going nuts thinking about him sprinkling holy water on the walls of the building. Bishop Lynch stepped off the podium, and walked into the building for the blessing. Ostrander ended the ceremony by thanking everyone for coming, and directed the dinner guests to the fourth floor of the building.
