First in Friendship
You won't find it on any college ranking, but 91Â鶹ӳ»´«Ã½ is “#1 in Friendship.†And it has become a near-ubiquitous tagline around campus.
Students proudly profess it and many don apparel sporting the now-signature phrase. There’s even a chance you may find a Sinsinawa 91Â鶹ӳ»´«Ã½ Sister wearing their own piece of #1 in Friendship swag, which was personally delivered to the Mound.
It is the legacy of relationship-centered support and compassion for all students set out by the Sisters that is the driving force behind generations of friendships, and now, a new motto to embrace that history.
“You’ll never meet a Sister at 91Â鶹ӳ»´«Ã½ who doesn’t want to learn about you, be your friend and invest in you,†said Lupe Tiscareño ’18, MSW ’22, who first coined the sentiment during the summer of 2021.
“And to me, that’s what friendship is about,†she added. “I think the Sisters really brought out this mission of relationship-centered work and Caritas and Veritas, and how that translates to first-year college students is the meaning behind #1 in Friendship.â€
Lupe, who is now the assistant director of academic advising as well as an adjunct instructor in the Rosary College of Arts and Sciences, began promulgating the catchphrase alongside colleague Mimi Pena ’21 as orientation leaders guided incoming students around campus.
The tagline, which originated as a play on the university’s prominent position in the U.S. News and World Report college rankings, quickly caught on—and students began fully embracing the message and passing it among themselves all throughout the summer.
“Every time one of the torch leaders went out of their way to help a student, or show kindness, we would always hear Lupe say, ‘That’s very #1 in Friendship of you,’†Sheila Dumaraog ’23, a 2021 orientation leader, recalled. “Lupe would say that often and it then transferred over onto us and shortly after we started hearing other students saying it to each other as well.â€
91Â鶹ӳ»´«Ã½ has long been a place where meaningful friendships are formed. Here are just a few stories of these enduring bonds.
A lifetime of laughter
They call themselves “Grannies Gone Wild.â€
They’re members of Rosary College’s Class of 1965, and their group is just as tight-knit as it was back when they gathered around tables in the Lewis Hall Grill or joined bridge games in the lounge.
“We just love being with each other,†says Barbara Tucker Philipps. Friend and classmate Donna Mathieu Kerns calls Barbara the “glue†that has held the core group of 10 friends together over time and distance—even while living 1,700 miles away from most of them.
“Of course, since we’ve been doing it for so many years, the depth of our love and understanding is really deep,†Barbara added. “Sixty years is a long time to be friends.â€
The friends came together at Rosary through local connections: All knew someone in the group from high school or earlier.
“The sense of community that Rosary fostered during our generation really solidified these friendships,†Barbara noted.
“I think it’s because we shared the same values and experiences when we were younger and, somehow, that has carried us through,†Donna said. “There’s just a commonality we have, being from the same school.â€
In the early days after graduation, the friends started a tradition called Girls Night Out to “stick together,†Donna said. Postcards with a date, time and location would go out on a regular basis.
“In one form or another, we’re still going—except now we’re texting one another!†Donna said.
Through the years there have also been trips and celebrations around the country, from Lake Geneva to Las Vegas, from Barbara’s home in Arizona to a friend’s winter condo in Florida (where the friends walked around wearing Groucho Marx glasses and mustaches). During one stay in Galena, Illinois, Barbara taught everyone how to text.
Since their 50th birthdays, they have been gathering to celebrate milestone birthdays and, of course, notable Rosary College reunion years.
“We share our lives and our experiences, but mostly we just laugh and drink wine and eat. What else is there?†Barbara quipped.
“We’re always laughing—I’m not sure sometimes what we are even laughing at, but we laugh a lot!†Donna added.
Barbara’s recommendation to friends just starting their life journey together? Designate a historian who will keep track of all your trips and gatherings.
“We can’t remember what year we went where,†Barbara said, laughing. “It’s ridiculous!â€
‘Our friends from our college days, they are forever’
