Mike Strong (’63) was a real YoYo. No, seriously – Mike was a member of The Brotherly Order of YoYos, an informal group of men that eventually became a Gonzaga-sanctioned club. One night, while at a dance being held at Newman Lake, Mike was noticed by Sunny O’Melveney (’65).
“I noticed him on the dance floor and I thought he had a perfectly ironed shirt. Then, I thought, ‘there is no way I could ever dance like that – very showy, skilled and coordinated,’” Sunny recalls. Mike remembers that night, too and their walk on the beach after dancing together.
“She had this great line. She said, ‘Gee, my face is cold…’ so what was I supposed to do? You get the picture.”
Mike and Sunny’s time together at Gonzaga was spent accumulating life-changing experiences. Among these for Sunny was being part of the first class to attend Gonzaga-in-Florence.
“That year really stretched my mind. It gave me a clue that there were other ways to think and do things,” said Sunny. “It was a profound experience.”
Another occurred in a booth, downstairs in the COG. Mike and Sunny were meeting there for a brown bag lunch. He offered to carry her bag and when she wasn’t looking, slipped something into her lunch. Once they sat down and Sunny started to pull out her sandwich, a little box came out with it.
“The ring – I had zero money,” said Mike, “you had to have a magnifying glass to see it!” Regardless of the ring’s size, Sunny said “yes” and the couple celebrated a ring ceremony in the chapel on campus before being married in 1965.
Things have changed a lot at Gonzaga since then. The campus has seen buildings come and go. Changes in the economy have taken a toll on tuition rates.
“When we went to school here, the tuition was 650 bucks. You could actually earn that. I paid my way through by working on a farm in the summertime and it was enough. That’s not possible anymore. You have to get help from somebody,” Mike said.
The Yo-Yos continued to hold reunions even after the club was no longer active on campus. That group not only took notice of the economic change, but decided to do something about it by creating an endowed scholarship, which they celebrated at their 50th reunion last fall.
Mike and Sunny feel strongly about the transformative effects Gonzaga has had on their lives and hope that their gifts to the Brotherly Order of YoYos Scholarship, the Mary Katherine Shaw Memorial Florence Scholarship, the Fund for Gonzaga, the Gonzaga Scholars Program and many more, can help a new generation of Zags experience Gonzaga the way that Mike and Sunny did.
“Gonzaga really gives people options to live their lives fully – to remember others and not just make a living, but to make a huge difference. Gonzaga gives you an opportunity to find meaning, and a meaningful life. To me, that’s huge,” said Sunny.
Mike and Sunny’s longstanding love for each other and their love for Gonzaga are certainly inspiring. If you’ve been inspired by Gonzaga in life or in love, show a little love to GU and make a gift today.