What is an SPU Legacy Family?
SPU Legacy families are Falcons through and through. Legacy families are those of two or more generations of direct descendants who are recipients of degrees.
Multigenerational SPU alumni are VIPs in every sense of the word, and we count it an honor to represent you!
Don’t miss this opportunity to celebrate with second-, third-, and fourth-generation Falcons. A fifth generation, anyone?
Celebrating Legacy Families
Ivy Cutting. Ivy Cutting has been a part of spring graduation rites since 1922, when the first Ivy Planting ceremony was introduced. Now, more than 90 years later, graduates participate in an Ivy Cutting ceremony in which each senior receives a cutting from a long, connected ring of ivy. The ceremony symbolizes the senior's tie to the University and its many alumni, as well as a newfound independence that comes with becoming a graduate. During the ceremony, students with a long legacy with SPU are invited to ring the bell of Alexander Hall. This rich tradition continues the celebration of Falcon families.
Bell Ringers. Our Legacy Bell Ringers for 2015 include:
Fourth generation:
Hannah Hall ’15, Krista Sunde ’15
Third generation:
Paige Aldrich ’15, Ryan Bovenkamp ’15, Lindsay Hansen ’15, Tabitha Harold ’15, Emily Mogren ’15, Sierra Williams ’15
Alumni whose children are new SPU students enrolling in the fall are invited to connect with fellow legacy families and to meet the Alumni and Parent Relations staff at a special reception during orientation.
Another generation joins the Seattle Pacific University family and the tradition continues.
Married to a Falcon, daughter of a Falcon, and mom to three Falcons, Marie Anderson is proud of her legacy family and a Falcon through and through.
She graduated in 1986; her husband, Paul, in 1985. Her son, Ben, finished his degree in 2012 and married Laura Willis of the Class of 2011. Marie’s daughter, Kate, graduated in 2015, and daughter, Jenna, Class of 2018, will be the 22nd person in her extended family to attend SPU! Marie definitely has a love for the University, and currently serves SPU parents through Parent Council.