Celebrate the 10th birthday of the Husky statue from wherever you are. Share a comment and tell us why you chose to purchase a paver and what Michigan Tech means to you.
Located across from the J. R. Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library, a larger-than-life, nine-foot-tall bronze Husky statue stands proudly on a Baraga County boulder, surrounded by benches, planters, and paver stones. The great campus tradition was unveiled on October 13, 2014, with nearly 1,000 people in attendance including the Pep Band, Husky student-athletes, faculty, staff, and community members.
The statue at the center of Husky Plaza has been a visible and lasting tribute to the spirit of Michigan Tech. Over the past 10 years, the Husky statue has served as a location for events, a welcome spot for campus guests, a backdrop for photos, and a meeting spot between friends. The tradition will continue for many years to come. The dedication of the John Rovano Plaza in October 2013 launched the Alumni Way project, which has continued to grow and span across campus with the Husky statue, the Clock Tower (donated by the William (Bill) ’69 and Ilene Bernard Jr. Family), and the Alumni Gateway Arch which was made possible through a lead gift from Mike Trewhella ’78.
The statue was made possible by a gift from the late Dan Lorenzetti and wife Joan Lorenzetti and their family. Additional contributions to the Husky Plaza came from Roland Huhtala ’74 and Pete ’53 and Shirley Meyers.
More than 1,000 alumni and friends left their mark on Michigan Tech with personalized, engraved stones that encircle Husky Plaza. If you purchased a paver, we invite you to leave a comment sharing what made you decide to purchase a paver and what Michigan Tech means to you.
Michigan Tech is the place where I became who I was supposed to be. I received an amazing education, made life-long friends, and met the person who became my spouse. MTU is part of my family’s history and my child is now a Husky as well. I’m proud of my university and not only wanted to give back, but wanted to know we had a permanent mark in a place we consider home.
I choose to purchase a brick to remember the awesome friends I made and time I had at school!
Michigan Tech provided me the foundation that shaped my entire life!! All of the blessings that I have achieved stems from hard work and my times at Michigan Tech, and the degree that I left with!! Hail to Michigan Tech and all of the blessings it will bestow on many in the future!!
Having a paver leaves a legacy mark on campus and celebrates the connections MTU has weaved into my family.
Wow! 10 years flies by like an instant. When the statue was built I bought a brick to celebrate my time at MTU and my son starting his journey at MTU. We are proud MTU alumni. Go Huskies!
I enjoy checking in once in a while (esp in winter) on the webcam.
Congrats on this 10 Year Anniversary!
We wish we could be there to celebrate in person. My wife and I supported with a paver to recognize all that Michigan Tech enabled for us. We each came to Tech as Community College transfer students. Michigan Tech gave us a path into careers and lives that neither of us would have imagined in the years before we became Huskies. Our years at Tech are dear to us, as is our appreciation for our professors. Today my wife and I work for one of the world’s largest aerospace companies. She designs and builds airplane cockpits to prove and optimize them in lab environments before they see action. I’m a Fellow of Advanced Visualization helping our teams know more, faster, and clearer than ever before. Best of all, our daughter is now a proud Husky majoring in Applied & Computational Mathematical Sciences and super involved in campus life! We love having this new “excuse” to return to campus, visit the Husky, see our paver (“Love in 2001”), and enjoy the Keweenaw that we had missed so much!
My time at Michigan Tech was one of the best 4 years of my life! Not only did I receive a fantastic education (BSME) but I also met my husband at Tech too. We purchased a paver to leave our legacy along with my father, who is also an alumni. Being a 2nd generation Tech grad means a lot of me and I hope all alumni feel the same. There is no place quite like Michigan Tech!
Just about everything in my life has flowed from my time at Tech. I got skills, a degree, a career, and a life partner as a result of being a Husky. Our paver commemorates mine and my wife’s foundation together.
I was the lucky one, I have two (2) pavers there….. It’s a long story…. Glad to contribute. GO TECH
Robert (Bob) Wickman Class of 1960
I met my best friend and husband at Michigan Tech. I have nothing but fond memories and credit Michigan Tech for setting me up for success as a professional. I have alot of respect for the direction Tech has and is taking and love how the administration has continued to stay true to the original mission of the school.
With two generations of Tech grads in our family it is an important part of our legacy, and the plaza will always be a reminder of that.
The 4 years I studied Tech, were the best years of my life. Ifeel I grew up at Tech. Irecieved a great education. Formed lasting relationships. Awhole new world oppened up for me. Thank You.
Leave a lasting legacy foundational building block for future generations of students and Alumni.
I’m honored to be asked to leave a comment on the Husky Statue’s 10th Anniversary. Diane and I love MTU. We have always loved our Husky mascot and the statue is in such a great location on campus where students, alumni and visitors can view it easily. Congrats to 10 years nobly standing watch over our campus and look forward to many more.
Go Huskies,
David & Diane Gothard
‘71 Grad & ‘75 Alum
I have been able to visit Houghton five times since I bought the paver, and every time, I visit it! Love the campus. Love the school. Love the city. Tech was a phenomenal experience and I have so many cherished memories.
We wanted a paver to leave a permanent mark on this incredible place that has left such a huge mark on our lives; for all the wonderful memories of finding each other, plenty of hard work and challenges, and great times with amazing friends.
Met my spouse at MTU and now our son is attending – making him a third generation Husky! The pavers we purchased for ourselves and my wife’s grandfather bring us joy to see every time we are on campus to visit our son! Always proud to have been and always be a Husky.
It was an honor and a privilege to support the Husky Statue Project! My time at Tech launched a long and successful career while producing memories and friendships that have lasted 50 years and counting. I hope the statue will inspire pride in students and alumni for decades, even centuries, to come.
Michigan Tech was immensely important to both my parents, and I wanted to honor their memories with something special; I think the paver is an ideal choice. I suspect my mother would have insisted on having her picture taken with the Husky statue, too!
My years at Tech so many years ago left an indelible resolve in me to achieve no matter what the obstacles . I have been a proud alumni supporter of MCM&T and MTU over more than sixty years. My paver is another example of this. I have also stayed true to the KDY fraternity in their fundraising efforts.
Thank you for giving me this opportunity to express my love for the school, fraternity and colleagues
Dave Crockett BSCE; 1962.
The paver was a birthday present to Tim. Michigan Tech is where we met, received our engineering degrees, and our two children are enrolled. Michigan Tech has a special place in our heart for being a place where we made so many friends and memories.
Michigan Tech provided me with the initial tools that led to a very successful career. I also met my wife while at MTU and will celebrate 50 years of togetherness next year. Purchasing a paver is a way to be thankful to the professors, friends, fraternity brothers and some of employees who I became friends with while at MTU.
Bob Bartosh
BSCE 1975
Michigan Tech winds throughout our family history. We have purchased pavers to celebrate 3 generations of Tech engineering grads, starting with Ray Oleszko ‘41; Amy Oleszko ‘82; Kara Bakowski ‘15 and Michael ‘18 (who was too late for the husky and had to celebrate the clock tower).
MTU provided an awesome education for us hardy folk that embraced the weather and isolation of the Keweenaw. We watched as the area was cleared and the husky was placed- what a great focal point for the campus.
Michigan Tech is home to so many fond memories from my time there. It has shaped the person I am today and I will forever be grateful for the time I spent there.
Thank you faculty and staff for the amazing space you cultivate in a small corner of our state.
I purchased a paver at the Husky statue, clock tower, and alumni way as a small token of appreciation.
The Husky statue is the only fitting stand-in for the EERC Tree. RIP.
I donated for one paver as I felt it would acknowledge the pride I have held for 61 years regards my two degrees from Tech. I also felt good about helping to construct Husky Plaza.
Michigan Tech provided the foundation for me to build a successful career. I will be forever grateful for not only the education but the activities that bonded all of us. The Husky statue is a great reminder of the spirit of Michigan Tech.
I followed my older brothers to Michigan Tech — because of visiting them there, I grew up thinking that going to a remote location at the end of the earth was perfectly normal! My four years there with my future husband were some of the best times of my life. The solid education we received laid a foundation for our engineering careers. We purchased a brick to always feel connected to this special place. Now, with my daughter also a Husky and walking by that brick every day, it brings a comforting sense of closeness, feeling she’s not so far away.
Michigan Tech gave me some of the best years of my life and provided the foundation for the career I’ve had. My wife also spent a year up there immediately after we were married and she loved it! Tech holds a special place in my heart and I am honored to support whenever possible. This past spring we were also blessed to see our nephew (we have no kids of our own) graduate from Michigan Tech.
Michigan Tech is a great university. The four years of work to complete my Mechanical Engineering degree were the best of my life.
KOENIG HALL
CENTENNIAL
1914-2015
As a graduate of MTU’s Chemistry Program in 1969,1970, I wanted to preserve the memory of Prof. George A. Koenig with this paver. Dr. Koenig is the Father of Chemistry at Michigan Tech. In 1968 old Koenig Hall, named in his honor, was replaced by a marvelous, modern facility with a woefully generic name “Chemical Sciences and Engineering Building”. Why Koenig’s name (a contemporary of others whose names still grace the campus, like Wadsworth, McNair, Fisher, etc.) was not retained for the new building seems almost inconceivable. Doing so disregarded and erases an important part of the history, traditions, and culture of Michigan Tech. Hopefully, this paver which lies in the shadow of the ought-a-be Koenig Hall, in some small way memorializes the man whose name should be on it.
Michigan Tech gave me some of the best years of my life and provided the foundation for the career I’ve had. My wife also spent a year up there immediately after we were married and she loved it! Tech holds a special place in my heart and I am honored to support whenever possible. This past spring we were also blessed to see our nephew (we have no kids of our own) graduate from Michigan Tech.
We purchased a paver to remember the great times we had with friends at MTU as well as the wonderful education we received. MTU was the start of a wonderful journey together. We’re proud to have our paver by the Husky statue!