Name: Nadine Brown (Michalczewski)               Town: Lebanon, OH
Affiliation: 1988 Graduate (AA and AAS)

Wow, has time flown! When my collegiate days started at MVCC, I was a resident at the time in Palos Hills and used their tennis courts many times. I even learned how to drive stick shift in the parking lot. I watched MVCC grow while taking classes in the trailers. They have certainly become an asset to the community and all who have attended and future students. I have lived in three states since graduating in 1988, completed my bachelor's degree and master's degree. I currently work for a 40-year-old-public university in OH. Happy Anniversary!

Nadine works for Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio.

Name: Peggy (Davies) Rochkus               Town: Chicago
Affiliation: Moraine Valley A.A.S. Graduate

I started Moraine Valley in the fall of '71. Very quiet student working at the bookstore. Met Kitty and Katie and was talked into joining the Vet's Club. It was the best thing I could have done during my time there. I met some great people, who became family to me while I was there. I owe all of them so much for accepting me into to their lives. They helped me grow up and become a better person. If it had not been for the vets, I don't think I would have enjoyed my time at MVCC. I want to send a THANK YOU out to some of the guys and girls. Ron, Sully, Mike, Pat, Fred, Earl, Joe, Ken, Bruce, Al, Larry, Tree, Geneo, Skippy, Kitty, Katie, Mary, Bonnie and Kathy. Pool parties, keggers, conventions, Christmas parties for needy kids, Fred's Halloween party and "Buzz" the security guard. We had a kinship all of us and many others I didn't mention. MVCC gave me the opportunity to grow personally and academically. I would not trade one minute of that time in my life. Congratulations on 40 years.

Peggy received an A.A.S. degree in Therapeutic Recreation and currently works as a water therapist at a residential facility for persons with developmental disabilities.

Name: Rosemarie Konrath                  Town: Upper Arlington, OH (formerly from Chicago Ridge, IL)
Affiliation: Moraine Valley Graduate (a long, long time ago!)

I attended Moraine Valley when many classes were held in various modular buildings during the Watergate crisis and the eventual resignation of President Nixon. Viet Nam was still fresh in our consciousness. Moraine Valley provided a stimulating and challenging environment. I was privileged to have many outstanding instructors and foremost among them was Jay Noteboom. He instilled a passion for American literature and good writing. I have thought of him often. I was able to go on to obtain a bachelor's degree, an MBA and pursue a career in banking that has been very rewarding. Thanks to everyone at Moraine Valley past and present. And a special thanks to Jay Noteboom.

Name: Sally (Pribble) Hartz               Town: Worth
Affiliation: Graduate

I started Moraine Valley in the fall of 1978 and in the fall of 1979 I saw a young man in the upstairs lounge drinking coffee. I immediately said to my classmate, "I don't know who he is, but I am going to marry him".

It is now 29 years later and we have been married for 24 of those 29 years together! We both have been working at jobs for over 25 years each and have a 17-year-old daughter who attends Stagg.

Thank you, Moraine Valley, for providing me the footsteps to my career and my family!
Congratulations on 40 years, I'm glad I was a part of it.

Sally currently works as a sales secretary for a local car dealership.

Leandro (Leo) Valdes              
Affiliation: 2007 Graduate

I started Moraine Valley in Fall 2005, after being tired of working a job I was not happy with for years. I just graduated with my Associate in Science degree and finished summa cum laude and as a member of Phi Theta Kappa. I was a bit nervous going back to college at 30 years old, but because of the great encouragement from the teaching staff, great student community and excellent facilities with flexible schedules, I was able to achieve my goals. I recently received a complete scholarship to the University of Illinois at Chicago with an accepted biochemistry/pre-med major. My experience at Moraine Valley has turned my life around, and I will be forever thankful to all the professors and staff that helped me along the way. MVCC is truly a great facility and I felt privileged to have been able to attend.

Marina Tadros               Town: Orland Park
Affiliation: 2007 Graduate

My name is Marina Tadros. I am 33 years old and a mother of three. I am very dedicated to my children. When I turned 30 I asked myself, “Is this it?” I love being a mom but I wanted more… I needed more. I enrolled at Moraine Valley Community College in 2003 and started off slowly because it had been over 12 years that I sat in a classroom. Nevertheless, I overcame my fear of change (and math) and will be receiving my associate’s degree in May 2007 with a 4.0 GPA. I never in a million years thought I would be able to juggle my family and school at the same time, especially since I was determined that I wasn't going to interrupt my kids' life while trying to improve my own. I attribute my success to not only my family but also Moraine Valley. The teachers and staff there are incredible. The staff always was very informative on what classes I needed to take to get closer to achieving my goal. The teachers were inspiring and motivating. I found out things about myself that I never realized before (I'm still afraid of math) but I love to write and I am good at it! I will never forget the day that one of my teachers asked me, "Are you sure you don't want to be an English major?" after I handed in a creative writing assignment. I was thrilled at those encouraging words and I believe that gave me the courage to apply for a staff writing job at my local paper and I got it! My first article that I wrote for the newspaper was published on the front page!

The teachers at Moraine, especially the ones that I have taken in the past, always go out of their way to say hello to me and tell me how they use my projects as examples for new students. It is an unbelievable feeling to know that I left a mark. Not only could I have never done it without the encouraging staff, but Moraine Valley makes education so accessible. With the classes being so much more inexpensive than other colleges, it makes it easier to add on more classes to your schedule. Also, Moraine Valley has classes available throughout the year to accommodate for the busiest schedules. This year is my last year at Moraine and I am sad to leave because I feel comfortable here and know that I matter. Regardless of where I will be in 10 years. I will always remember that Moraine Valley Community College paved the way for me to achieve my goals and I am determined to get there!

Vanessa Smith               Town: Bridgeview
Affiliation: student

I am so happy to know that as I turn 40 this year also, it's fitting that I will be graduating next month (May 2007) from the Respiratory Therapy Program. Moraine has been a great experience for me and I will always feel proud that I was a student at this great institution.

Mary Toomey               Town: Oak Lawn
Affiliation: Graduate/Dual Enrollment Facilitator

The fall of 1974 was an exciting time—the start of college and a teachers' strike. My favorite memory is a new innovation at MVCC—the Vertical Team. This was a large, team taught class that met four times a week for two hours. It was the equivalent of COM-101, HUM-101 and SSC-101. This group of teachers used a multi-disciplinary approach to help us explore the current topic—a real learning experience! More than that, this class promoted a feeling of unity between all the students. We would often go to the forest preserves together and hang out after class. I am also still in close contact with a friend I met there. (I can't believe we used to smoke and eat during class!)

Nancy M. Donlon               Town: Evergreen Park
Affiliation: Student/Associate instructor

After a not so wonderful year at Northern Illinois (University), I was strongly encouraged to "take a look" at the new community college in the area. I did take a look, loved what I saw and in fall 1968 I became a part of the Moraine (Valley) family. It was magical, that first year. We were all new, students, faculty, administration—and in the newness we came together to carve out the beginning of a dream come true. There was much to do that first year-clubs needed to start up, there was a newspaper to start and name, sports to organize and a student government to create. We were a small student body, but we worked hard. The first semester was spent in the warehouses on 115th street, but by second semester we were in the "huts" and we felt that we were really college students. I worked part-time in the admissions office, while going to school. I kept that job for some time and after graduating from University of Illinois at Chicago, I returned to MVCC as an associate instructor. My initial duties were supervised by Dr. Irene Brodie in the Study Skills Center and later I became part of the instruction team of the Industrial Engineering Program with Dr. Robert Van Raes. I left Moraine when my first child was born and never thought I would return. But after three kids, I was confused about where life was taking me. I went back to the only place I knew that could help me figure out my dilemma - Moraine. I taught GED classes in the evening and eventually decided to enter law school. It was quite an undertaking for a single mom with three children, but I knew that the strength I discovered at Moraine would get me through and it did. That was 20 years ago.

Today I am a family law attorney and Moraine still plays a part in my life. So many of my clients are women who have been married for a long time and have little skill to enter the workforce. Moraine has a "Returning Woman Program" that I refer my clients to on a regular basis. Things don't look the same over on campus, not as I remember. But every once in a while, I drive over to 107th street. From the top of the hill, you can see the sprawling campus, with so many buildings, people, cars. But I see the "huts" and fondly remember the place that gave me so much for so many years.

Nancy is an attorney practicing family law.

Ray Hanania               Town: Orland Park (Burbank)
Affiliation: Summer classes/daughter received Associate degree

In the early 1970s, I attended Moraine Valley Community College mainly for a couple of summer classes while at Reavis High School, and later between studies at Northern Illinois University and later after serving during the Vietnam War, while at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

My daughter, Carolyn, however, received her associate's degree from MVCC, and it was something that I think helped her towards a stronger, more solid career choice. She went on to finish undergraduate school at DePaul and then received a masters degree in communications there. Today, she works for the Department of Homeland Security as a special agent, and I am very proud of her.

But it was as a teenager at Reavis High School that I remember MVCC the most. Moraine would often invite students from Reavis to attend special programs. I started my journalism career at Reavis and became the editor of the school newspaper, the Blueprint, in my senior year. We would go to Moraine to meet with people from the community to expand our knowledge and also to understand future careers.

The counselors there heard that I also played lead guitar in a band with several other Reavis High School students. We played all over--at Evergreen Park High School, Marist High School, Leo High School, and also locally for 8th grade dances, including at Tobin Elementary school. I think our band was called the "CTA" at the time -- real original. Sure.

Anyway, MVCC had organized Battles of the Bands there, and they invited us to come and play and also practice. At the time, the only places we could practice were in our garages and the neighbors would always call the police on us. One time, John Oremus, the former mayor of Bridgeview, heard we were looking for places to play and he let us play in his garage. He was the mayor, and no one complained as we hammered out Led Zeppelin songs with the garage door opened to the neighborhood.

Since then, I have been lucky to be able to come back to Moraine and speak to different classes on journalism, on writing, and on the complex challenges we face in the Middle East.

Thanks, and congratulations to a great community icon, and a great community college.

Ray writes for several local and national newspapers and does does stand up comedy that promotes peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.

Sandy Leonard               Town: Palos Hills
Affiliation: Graduate class of 1999

After high school I attended MVCC and I remember meeting friends and shooting pool or lounging around on the "Bridge" between classes. It was GROOVY!

Sandy now works at Moraine Valley in the secretarial field.

Margie Owens-Klotz               Town: Orland Park
Affiliation: Alumna and current parent of a Moraine student

I received my Associate of Arts Degree from Moraine in 1983. I have many wonderful memories of the two years that I spent there, making great friends and learning from some of the best teachers I've had in my academic career that eventually led to my Master's Degree.

Two of my favorite professors were Mary Rita Freudenthal and Hal Boadway. I also had Marge Zamora who taught American History.

It was Mrs. Zamora who asked me to represent Moraine at the Model Illinois Government in Springfield. I "was" State Representative Loleta Didrickson for a week as we considered legislation, attended committee hearings and learned about state government.

Mrs. Freudenthal was the type of professor that every student hoped for. She'd enter the classroom, singing, "I've got happy feet!" She was enthusiastic, always upbeat and made learning child development so much fun.

Mrs. Freudenthal wasn't afraid to show her emotions when she spoke of the importance of being a parent, how children develop and the commitment required to raise a healthy, well-balanced child. I remember her reading a Mother's Day poem that she had found in a magazine. By the time she finished, there wasn't a dry eye in the classroom.

Mr. Boadway made his classes think. I remember Mr. Boadway briskly entering the room at the start of class, with his white collar length hair moving in step with his gait. Knowing his reputation for being a lively, thought provoking instructor, I enrolled in Mr. Boadway's sociology class and I was not disappointed.

And, not only were the teachers committed to the students, the guidance counselors were too. Mary Ann Krajacic was my guidance counselor and what a gem she was. Mrs. Krajacic was always attentive, devoted to the students and one of the funniest people I met during my years at Moraine. I've learned that Mrs. Krajacic recently retired from the college. Think of the thousands and thousands of lives she's touched during her years at the college. What a testimony!

Students from the early 80s will remember spending time on "the bridge." That was where you'd find your friends who were either between classes or who should have been in class.

My daughter graduated from high school last year and hadn't decided what field she wanted to enter. My husband and I encouraged her to complete her general education requirements at Moraine and give herself time to think about where she'd like to transfer and what degree she'd like to pursue.

My daughter, too, has had a wonderful first year at Moraine. She's enjoying her classes, seeing old friends and making new ones and is creating an academic foundation on which she can continue to build.

Thanks for the memories, Moraine....those from more than twenty years ago and those that our daughter is creating now.

Margie works in public relations.