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Last month, we asked alumni to tell us about their favorite Wesleyan spring break memories. Here are their responses:

I was in the Wesleyan Tour Choir, so every Spring Break, we went on tour somewhere. One tour during my time involved a trip to New York City, and one went to the Midwest (where in Louisville, I found out what a 7 and 7 is, then suffered a severe hangover on the bus the next day on the way to Indiana).

As a senior, I finally got to go to Florida with the choir, after being jealous of my friends all those other years. It was my first time to see Florida. We drove many hours on the bus to get there. I remember falling asleep and waking up to see my first palm tree-what a thrill! Unfortunately, when we got to St. Petersburg, they were having a red tide and we were told not to go in the ocean, because it was killing the fish. Well, that didn't stop me! This was my first spring break to Florida, and I was going in! So I swam for a few minutes in the surf, the only girl brave enough, along with about 4 or 5 of the guys. We sang in a huge church in St. Pete, and the minister asked everyone from West Virginia to stand up and there was a large number who stood. We visited Disney World when it had only been open for about a year. It was just the Magic Kingdom at that point, and I don't even remember Orlando, it was so small. On our way back north, we went to see "The Exorcist" at a theater I think in North Carolina, and I remember sitting with my best friend (but not boyfriend), Phil Loftis, and during all the scary scenes, I was laughing at him because he had his fingers in his ears, his eyes squinted as tightly shut as he could, and his head down into his lap!!

One of the earlier tours involved a trip to Washington, DC, and we got to stay with the family of the vice president of the Federal Reserve. When we had a free day in DC, my great aunt, Roz, who worked at the Dept. of Agriculture, took Phil and me out to lunch at a very fancy restaurant (she was very well off), and the waiter brought out a wine bottle for Phil to inspect, and here was this college kid from little old Buckhannon who had no idea what he was supposed to do with that wine bottle. So Aunt Roz showed him!

I cannot attest to the complete accuracy of these memories, because my memory is not as good as it used to be!
-- Mary Boyd '74

Spring Break? What was THAT?!?! I was a member of the amazing WVWC Tour Choir from 74-78. We had no clue what the "normal kids" did for Spring Break. We loaded choir, luggage, equipment, books, music, etc, etc, etc onto a Greyhound bus driven by our biggest fan/faithful friend/ counselor, Junior Stokes. I remember mixing up Larry Parson's clothes in his suitcase (did you know he's color blind?) so that he wore some of the oddest color combinations, hiding pictures that got his attention in the pages of his choir music, putting the marshmallow Easter bunny on the end of his baton, causing it to eventually stick in his hair. I remember pulling into a McDonald's (was there ever anything else on the lunch menu?) and piling out of the bus singing "Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese...... " in four-part harmony as we crowded into the restaurant. It actually got us a free lunch one time. I remember spending the night in many, many homes as we traveled - waking up one morning to the sensation of hair, hot breath and a really nasty smell. The family sheepdog (which I didn't even know they had) was two inches from my face! Talk about a wake-up call! I remember sharing laughter, tears, elation and exhaustion with all the wonderful members of the choir as we performed (sometimes two or three times a day) during each spring break. We became a family and poor Larry became the father of 40+ very trying kids every spring. I wouldn't have traded those experiences for all the beach vacations in the world. Of all my wonderful experiences at WVWC, tour choir and the friends I made there remain my most cherished memories.
-- Cathy McIntyre Oakes ‘74-‘78, '05

My favorite Spring Break was spent with the Wesleyan Tour Choir (Concert Chorale) and Dr. Larry Parsons. In 1981 we went to the Midwest, visiting St. Louis, Kansas City, Chicago, even Iowa, I think, and other cities in Kansas and Ohio. My tour roomie was Joy Krause Shoop and we had an exciting time visiting big cities this Southern WV girl had never even been near! The bus rides were long but fun, with terrific camaraderie. I remember staying with a lovely older lady in Kansas City who took us on a driving tour of posh homes and her beautiful city. Her sun porch had a gardenia bush and she gave us some of the sweet-smelling blooms on our breakfast table. A group of us also stayed with a lady in Ohio who had what seemed like hundreds of stuffed fish trophies hanging on her walls! Chicago was amazing, especially seeing "My Fair Lady" – and was Rex Harrison really playing Henry Higgins or is my memory that wacked? The music we sang was heavenly as well, Menotti's "Missa O Pulchritudo." It was such an honor to sing that beautiful piece with Dr. Parsons and the choir. Almost 30 years have passed and I still smile at these precious memories!
-- Sarah Callaway Shaver '81

Memory Question

Responses to Last Month's Question