Shaw University News May 2016 Alumnae Olivia Williams and Hazel Gibbs - Nearly 50 years of Friendship, Laughter and Love The year was 1965 and both Olivia Williams'69 and Hazel Gibbs'69 arrived at Shaw University as eager freshman ready to take in all that the University had to offer. Here, they both tell the Shaw Gazette what it was like during their time at Shaw and how a friendship that began in Estey Hall has matured and grown for nearly 50 years. >From Olivia.... Attending Shaw University has afforded me more FF (friends forever), more smiles, more reasons to LOL (laugh out loud), and more OMG (oh my God) moments than I am worthy of. Sometimes, blessings come to us in ways that we don't recognize at first glance. The buildings at Shaw University were old, but, full of cheer, charm, character and history. My professors were knowledgeable and charismatic. In no way do I feel slighted with the education I received at Shaw. Some of my greatest memories and pleasures come from the life- long friends that I met there. While most of us don't see or talk with each other that often, we know that there is a bond among us that has stood the test of time. When we do get together, we can pick up where we left off about forty years ago and have a grand time. I have been blessed to have reconnected with one of my Shaw friends and it has made both of our lives richer. Hazel Suggs Gibbs and I were roommates our freshman year along with four other girls. We lived in Estey Hall, on the second floor, in the front suite, with a balcony. We were all young and impressionable. We were in the dorm by sunset curfew, observed quiet study time from 7:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m., took a stroll to the student union and were back in the dorm by the 9:30 p.m. door lock. We were conscientious about attending classes and completing assignments. There was a lot of spirit and camaraderie on our campus. We loved going to football, basketball and baseball games. We loved dances in the gym on Saturday nights. We loved the cultural enrichment programs provided for us. We would attend most activities with our roommates and close friends. We would laugh, talk and just have fun. Hazel and I ended up being roommates again our sophomore year. We lived in a campus owned house on Blount Street. She had the top bunk and I had the lower. Hazel pledged Delta at the end of our freshman year and I pledged our sophomore year. My mother and Hazel's aunt visited often, bringing food for all, along with plenty of wisdom about staying focused and doing our best. During our junior and senior years we sort of grew into our own. We began to connect with people in our majors and develop our own interests. We had boyfriends and dreams. Upon graduation we each went out chasing those dreams. Our contact with each other was sporadic. We would see one another a few times a year and exchange Christmas cards with a note of how we were doing. We were busy building careers and families. I am not real sure when Hazel and I rekindled our closeness, but I think it was during the planning for our 40th class reunion. We worked on that committee together and then we were asked to work on other projects together. We found ourselves right back in that familiar setting where it had all begun for us. We were strolling across campus, meeting in Estey Hall, attending football and basketball games - following the teams all the way to the championships, connecting with our Alpha Rho Sorors, and supporting various activities on campus. It felt so right and provided a certain peace to both of us. Now, we see ourselves as two retired, energetic grand mothers who spend our time doing the things that soothe our souls and those things that we enjoy. We often speak of our blessings and our gratefulness. We shop at the young folks stores, wear high heels, red lip stick, color our hair and drive cars that will move faster than we should. When we are together, we still smile and LOL! Our joys, worries, and dreams provide us with many OMG moments. This 45-year friendship has come full circle, in the place where it all began, Shaw University. Thank you Hazel and Thank you Shaw U! Olivia Williams >From Hazel... My family's connection with Shaw began in the late 20's - early 30's when my aunt was a student. I was excited about coming to Shaw as I had heard many stories about Shaw and had been on the campus while growing up. My student years at Shaw were one of the happiest times of my life. School was about new friends, new experiences and doing well in my studies. While students at Shaw in the mid 60's, female students could not travel off campus alone unless we were signed-out by a responsible adult. Students needed to travel in pairs to go downtown to Hudson-Belk or to the grill on Person Street. This fostered an overall closeness felt by many of the students during that time. I distinctly remember a trip to Western Union that Olivia and I made together and downtown trips to Hudson Belk and to Mac Josephs. Olivia had a sister who was a student at St. Augustine's College while we were students at Shaw. We would also go to St. Aug to visit. During our sophomore year, our dean, Elizabeth Cofield, assigned eight of us to live together in a "shot-gun" house on Blount Street while the Dimple Newsome Women's Dormitory was under construction. Olivia had the bottom bunk and I had the top bunk. A senior student and former Miss Shaw, Vera Allen, was our housemother. This housing assignment provided many warm memories. My aunt Sarah would come to visit on Saturdays and bring us a basket of food - fried chicken and potato salad. We loved going to football games and I remember us even traveling to Durham to North Carolina Central's homecoming. We have loved the return of football. We were not as consistent about attending Homecoming during the missing football years. Our attendance at Homecoming was consistent in the years (since the 20th year) when our class was in reunion. Olivia and Lydia Butler '69 told me it was important for me to be a part of the reunion attendees during our 30th year reunion. I have been consistent in my attendance since. We have had successful careers spanning 30+ years in the education arena. We are now both retired. Olivia and Linda Davis '72 helped build my confidence as I was working through my retirement decision. Olivia became a grandmother before I did and she has been especially supportive in my new role as a grandmother. My grandchildren live in Arizona and she encouraged me to go to them as often as they ask me to come or as I desire to go. We have made many road trips to football games. We have also come to love basketball in Spaulding Gymnasium on Saturdays. If there is a basketball game on campus on a Saturday, look up on the top row behind the scorer's table and wave at us! We enjoy the game, people watching, and catching up. I bring snacks (dark chocolate and almonds); Olivia brings water. We share with the folks around us. And, we have absolutely the best time! We are energetic grandmothers who love Shaw and each other and who drive almost matching fast cars. Olivia is a treasure and I look forward to many more years of being her friend and working and supporting Shaw University. We are Forever Friends. Hazel Gibbs SANDRA M. 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