4 D'MENSIONS MAGAZINE FALL 2025 INBOX D'YOUVILLE UNIVERSITY 5 FALL 2025 INBOX _______ HISTORY WAS MADE at D’Youville College on Friday, Aug. 27, 1971, as 12 male students entered Madonna Hall for their freshman orientation. They were to be one of the most rambunctious groups of undergrads in DYC’s long and distinguished history. To say they were not quite ready for us would lend itself to understatement. There were no real “men’s rooms” to speak of, so someone put black tape over the “wo” in “women,” and away we went. In taking our physical education courses, there was only a women’s locker room. The men changed in a very small custodian closet where we managed somehow to get into our swimsuits amid the mops and brooms. But one certainty prevailed; this bond that was formed amongst 12 strangers 54 years ago led to many lifelong friendships, which are still strong to this very day. Charles Priore (’75) _______ MADONNA HALL WAS WHERE the “day hops” hung out between class and sometimes the “Rathskeller” under the current theater, but that was literally a dungeon. So much went on in Madonna because it was also the main path to cut through from outside to the classrooms and the health/science building and the library. The residents from Marguerite Hall and Madonna used it as a thoroughfare, especially before the Student Center was built. We studied, gossiped, worried about tests and procrastinated going to the library. We heard about good and bad dates and good and bad professors and helped plan graduations, weddings and Moving Up Day parades there. Because the dorm, the dining hall, library, admin building, chapel and the classrooms were all connected through Madonna, we had at least two members of our class who didn’t leave the building from Winter Break until Spring Break — more than 60 days of being inside, and they were proud of it. Madonna (and Marguerite) were also our names when we went to the Armory or other taverns and met guys and didn’t want to see them again. I have many memories — including taking turns pounding a coin into a wedding ring for a gal in our group (I wonder if her husband still wears it). It took many months to create. I am sure we showed up in some of your photos. I couldn’t locate any, but the ones in my mind will be treasured forever — beige linoleum squares, turquoise sofas and so many lovely memories. Mary M. DeLaney (’72) _______ MY FONDEST MEMORIES are the ethnic food tables in Madonna Lounge, hosted by Campus Ministry. Staff would bring Italian dishes for St. Joseph’s Table. Polish dishes were shared at the Easter Swieconka. Father Walker would open with a blessing of gratitude. We valued community. Madonna Lounge was an oasis of peace. Light from the tall windows facing Fargo Avenue filled the space. It was a privilege to have access to a grand piano, which I played on occasion. One of my roommates played the flute, and we practiced together. In the dorm, we shared a telephone at the end of the hall. Whoever answered would shout a name down the hall and/ or knock on one’s door. There was also a “phone booth” in the basement near the laundry room. Cell phones did not exist — screen time was gathering around the common TV in the kitchenette at the end of the halls. Sister Denise Roche was our RA during freshman year. She was an exemplary role model and most likely inspired me to want to become a Grey Nun. What I loved about Madonna Hall was seeing many Grey Nuns walk through on their way to meals or the administrative building. The work and values of these women set me on a path of dedicated service. Jennifer Christiansen (’80) _______ I REMEMBER THE HAIR CARE AREA in the basement (in the early 1970s). Many of us with long straight hair at the time loved it, (as well as) the sinks and particularly the strong dryers attached to the walls. Kris Lamar Before a night out with friends at the entrance of Madonna Hall in the early 1970s. I SPENT A HAPPY HOUR transported back to my DYU years (1958-62), while looking at the old and new pictures of Madonna Hall in the latest D’Mensions. As a sophomore with no car, I somehow arranged to spend Tuesday nights in Madonna that first year it opened. I bunked wherever there was an empty bed and took the bus with the regular resident students out to OLV hospital for our clinical day. How I ever managed my huge, starched apron is lost in time. I remember looking out the windows of Madonna Hall, watching the snow fall, listening to Marty Robbins singing “The Streets of Laredo” and wondering about living somewhere with no snow. Little did I know that in 1971, I’d move west permanently. As I write this (in Arizona), it is 104 degrees outside. The lobby was where we met our dates for junior prom, under the watchful eye of the nun assigned to monitor our coming and going. We had a curfew — it may have been midnight. By then, I’d moved into the dorms for my entire junior year. The dining room picture evokes a lot of old memories, and many in that picture were my classmates. You had to be seated in place when the nun assigned to eat with us showed up, or you’d have to give Sister your excuses. We tried to make sure our table was full, so she wouldn’t sit with us. In retrospect, that was very shortsighted. We were young and sheltered in those very different times. I was especially so — I was horrified when as a senior, I learned that the nuns could drink wine. Finally, thanks for the pictures of our student uniforms. We thought we were “hot stuff” in those. I love all the updates, and I wish I’d been able to persuade some of my many nieces and nephews to attend D’Youville. Thanks again! Cathy Luby Ceranski (’62) MADONNA MEMORIES Photos of residence hall’s past ignite memories of curfews, janitor closets, bar hopping and more
