She shared a quote from an article her mother, Luisa, wrote in 1933, exhorting fellow members of a local political club to express their opinions with confidence.

“It is not my intention to be critical,” wrote DeLauro’s mother, who would go on to serve for 35 years on the Board of Aldermen in New Haven, Connecticut. “Rather, my motive in writing this article is to encourage the female members of this organization to take a more active part in its affairs. … I have noticed that the girls, unlike the men, are timid in asserting themselves, and many a good idea is lost, having been suppressed by its creator.

“Come on, girls. Let’s make ourselves heard.”

DeLauro, who entered public service after earning degrees from Marymount College and Columbia University, has been serving Connecticut’s 3rd Congressional District since 1991. In January, she became chair of the House Appropriations Committee—only the second woman to lead the group responsible for shaping the federal government’s discretionary spending priorities. She’s also the ranking member on the subcommittee that oversees the nation’s investments in education, health, and employment.

Awarding Fervent Service

DeLauro was one of three women honored by the Marymount College Alumnae Association Board during the virtual reception, held as part of Fordham’s virtual Jubilee weekend.

Kathy Higgins, MC ’71, received the Gloria Gaines Award, the board’s highest honor, given to an alumna for service to one’s church, community, and Marymount. Higgins’ service began as a student at Marymount, when she worked in the infirmary on the Tarrytown campus. For the past 30 years, she has worked for ARC Westchester, a nonprofit offering support to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Westchester, New York.

Higgins joked that some people would look at her paycheck and think she was a volunteer, but service and volunteering are what offer her “a true sense of community.”

“I love the work and consider it a privilege to be able to help so many wonderful families,” she said. “Marymount College made a huge impact on my life, not only for the wonderful education I received but also the incredible people I have met. It’s sad that the college we knew and loved is no longer in Tarrytown,” she said of the women’s college, which was part of Fordham University from 2002 until the college closed in 2007. “But I am thankful to those who are keeping the spirit of Marymount alive.”

Teresita Abay-Krueger, MC ’80, was honored with the Golden Dome Award, presented to the alumna whose efforts of continuous service have advanced Marymount as an institution.

While studying biology and chemistry at Marymount in the late 1970s, she landed an internship with Union Carbide Corporation—located close to campus—and that experience, along with some inspiration from three of her professors, spurred her into a 20-year career in research and development at IBM. After leaving IBM, she founded a New York-based consulting practice.

Accepting the award, Abay-Krueger said that, as a commuter student, she often wondered if living off-campus put her at a disadvantage. Today, she realizes that the personal attention and care she received from professors and administrators, and the bonds she formed with her classmates, inspired her to pursue excellence nonetheless.

“It’s always been about being surrounded by that intellectual environment in Marymount; whether I was with other students or with many of the professors, or even among the administrative people, there was always this drive for excellence and intellectual attainment, and I really appreciated that above anything else,” Abay-Krueger said.

“When you’re surrounded with determined, smart women all striving to be their very best, you can’t help but be inspired by that as well—and everyone on this call demonstrates that,” she said.

A Milestone Year

The board also recognized alumnae celebrating their 25th, 50th, and other milestone reunions—including two alumnae celebrating their 75th: Denise Kobel and Josephine Stigliano, both members of the Class of 1946. Though Stigliano was unable to join the event, Kobel tuned in with her granddaughter, Carolyn Budelman, MC ’04.

During the event, attendees got to take a “slide” down memory lane as they viewed photos and spoke about Marymount memories that had been submitted ahead of time. Event organizers also asked Tarrytown-themed trivia questions throughout the event, in honor of Marymount’s original campus location.

Paula Mahayosnand, MC ’93, president of the Marymount College Alumnae Board, said that while she wished they were able to gather at Fordham, she was nonetheless happy to be together in spirit.

“For more than a dozen years, we’ve remained committed to coming together on the Rose Hill campus, meeting each other in person and celebrating our fellow alumni from across classes,” she said. “I don’t think we could have predicted we would be in this for another 16 months of the pandemic … but we have adapted, and here we are today.”

In a pre-recorded message, Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham University, welcomed the Marymount graduates home and congratulated them on their recent fundraising success on Giving Day, saying a record number of people contributed to the Marymount Legacy Fund—which the board created to provide scholarship support to young women at Fordham who “embody the Marymount spirit through learning and leadership.”

“The alumni community showed the power of their love for Marymount, their care for young scholarship recipients, and their commitment to the efforts of the members of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary,” he said. “More alumni donated this year than ever before. I applaud your efforts.”

Father McShane also congratulated this year’s award winners, and he echoed Mahayosnand’s wishes to see everyone in person sooner rather than later. “I hope that you’ll continue to stay connected, and that I’ll get to see in person again very soon,” he said.

Still, for Heather McWilliam, MC ’88, secretary of the Marymount College Alumnae Board, the virtual event was an emotional one.

“I didn’t expect the overwhelming feeling that I hope all of us are receiving by just sharing this moment,” she said. “I think all of us are here today sharing this event because of our love, and [because we’re]  cherishing moments of what Marymount represents and what it did for us.”

After the exhibit closed in February, the reproduction was carefully taken down and packed away. In November, it was given a new home in Fordham’s Butler Commons on the Rose Hill campus.

Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, called the gift a welcome addition to the University’s collection, one that will “touch our hearts, engage our minds, and lift our spirits.”

“It is an honor to once again partner with the Met, one of New York City’s preeminent cultural institutions, and to provide a permanent home to a reproduction of Michelangelo’s most ambitious and stirring masterpiece,” he said.

“Such a work embodies the divine grace of God. Its presence will remind us of our own Catholic heritage.”

The fresco, which Michelangelo painted between 1508 and 1512 at the behest of Pope Julius II, is one of the most famous pieces of art in the world. Among its features are narrative scenes from the Book of Genesis, the Book of Maccabees, and the Gospel of Matthew. One of its most iconic images is the artist’s rendition of The Creation of Adam.

The gift is emblematic of both the Met’s and Fordham’s extensive roots in New York City. Father McShane first saw the fresco during an early morning tour of the exhibit arranged by Fordham Trustee Fellow Edward M. Stroz, GABELLI ’79, and his wife Sally Spooner. They were joined by Erin Pick, then a senior administrator at the Met, and Maria Ruvoldt, Ph.D., chair of the department of art history at Fordham.

He said he knew from the moment he entered the room that it would be a magnificent addition to Fordham’s campus. As chance would have it, the group crossed paths with Carmen Bambach, Ph.D., a curator at the Met who specializes in Italian Renaissance art. From 1989 to 1995, Bambach was also an assistant professor of art and music history at Fordham when Father McShane was dean of Fordham College at Rose Hill.

 “She looked at me and said, ‘You hired me at Fordham.’ I smiled and said that I had indeed hired her,” Father McShane said.

“After the tour was over, Erin, Carmen, and Maria worked on a proposal that we could place before the Met leadership to see if we could secure the piece for Fordham. Much to my surprise, we were informed a few weeks later that the Met approved our proposal.”

Quincy Houghton, deputy director for exhibitions at the Met, echoed the bond between the museum and Fordham.

“We are pleased that this painting will have a future life at Fordham, as another manifestation of the many scholarly connections between our two institutions, and that it will be widely used as a teaching tool,” he said.

“We look forward to seeing it in its new home.”

Ruvoldt said that although the fresco is among the most famous paintings in the world, it’s often seen in piecemeal fashion, such as the well-known section featuring the nearly touching hands in The Creation of Adam.

“Typically, when students learn about this in an art history classroom, they’re seeing a projection on the wall. They don’t have the experience of the entirety of the composition, and the experience, frankly, of just looking up at it, which sounds a little simple, but was key to the way the painting was meant to be understood,” she said.

“Michelangelo really got that the people who would be looking at it would be looking at it from below. So, it’s a unique experience for students to see it.”

Among the details one can observe in the full reproduction is evidence that Michelangelo actually realized, halfway through the production, that he’d have to rethink his approach. Ruvoldt said the latter sections feature visible changes in the scale of the figures, and compositions become simpler, so they’re more discernible from below.

Watch Ruvoldt give a guided explanation of the fresco reproduction.

Butler Commons, which is named for the founder of Marymount College and is just one floor above the University’s theology department, is an ideal location for it, she said, because it’s open to all. The University will open it to members of the campus community in January, and members of the public can arrange visits in the same manner they currently use to visit the University’s Museum of Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Art.

“I picture it as something that not only art history professors can bring students in to look at it, but the theology department as well. The subject matter is the entire story of Genesis, the prophets, and the ancestors of Christ—it could be interesting as well for interdisciplinary investigation.”

The gift is only the latest collaboration between the two institutions. Last year, Fordham lent the Met Cristóbal de Villalpando’s Adoration of the Magi; the museum restored it and included its July exhibition Cristóbal de Villalpando: Mexican Painter of the Baroque.

Update: While Butler Commons will remain secured, any member of the Fordham community who wishes to view the reproduction can contact the reception desk at Tognino Hall during business hours to have them open the room. During the weekends and after business hours, Public Safety will respond and open the room for any requested viewing. Members of the public can also make arrangements to view the artwork during business hours. No food or beverages are permitted in Butler Commons.