Minnesota has proudly chronicled 100 years of the accomplishments of University of Minnesota alumni and faculty. The cover of this centennial issue, with its array of covers from past issues, illustrates that mission beautifully. Like welcoming hosts, the faces on every issue of Minnesota invite readers inside the magazine to learn about the endeavors of people affiliated with the University. Preparing to mark the 100th anniversary of the magazine, I became curious about how our readers feel about Minnesota .

Because life members make a special commitment to their alma mater, I randomly queried 500 of them. I wanted their responses to be heartfelt, informal, and unrehearsed, so I surveyed them by e-mail. The first reply came almost immediately, from Roger Adams (B.S. ’51, Ph.D. ’67) of Maple Plain, Minnesota, who said, "I thoroughly enjoy the Minnesota magazine and look forward to receiving it." After that, every time I turned on my computer, my mailbox was full of messages from life members. The response was staggering. Here are a few of the comments:

Most of the respondents say they frequently share articles with friends, fellow alumni, and family members. Gil McDowell (B.A. ’59) of Palm Harbor, Florida, notes that he will "often tear out articles and give them to friends who do not get the magazine. I’ve had several, over the years, join the association as a result of this." Robert Fehr (M.S. ’73) of St. Paul clips articles as "a way to encourage my teenage sons to develop interest and excitement in their own college plans and aspirations." And Bonnie (McCarvel) Nagel (B.S. ’77) of St. Louis writes that she shares stories from Minnesota because she has to "work to dispel some of the myths about Minnesota that Fargo created!"

While many report that they feel proud when reading about the accomplishments of students, researchers, or fellow alumni, Wayne Sorensen (B.S. ’65) of Austin, Texas, writes that he is "less pleased to discover in Minnesota that over the years our athletics programs have been the subject of several investigations for misconduct." F.L. Gus Cooper (B.A. ’41) of Dunedin, Florida, speaks for many with his words, "Occasionally we are angered by an article such as when the state Legislature is niggardly in its appropriations for the University." But overall, our life members’ comments are summarized by Edward Landa (Ph.D. ’75) of Reston, Virginia, who writes, "Many of the stories have touched me—from the light ones (the guy who invented poetry magnets for the refrigerator door), to the inspiring (the U physician who left Hungary during the Hungarian Revolution), to the personal (a post-9/11 account by the editor about her reaction to a bag of powdery material on the road near campus)."

While most inform us that they pass their magazines on to others or eventually reluctantly recycle them, I was thrilled to read that Sandy Morris (B.A. ’64, M.A. ’72) of Minneapolis saves the executive director’s column "and sometimes an article or two. Occasionally, in fits of organizational correctness, I discard everything and start over again," she writes. Gordon Gauss (B.S. ’74) of Tempe, Arizona, says he saves Minnesota for a year, while Ronald Phillips (Ph.D. ’66) of Shoreview, Minnesota, keeps them for five. But Roger Morris (Ph.D. ’84) of Glebe, Australia, has saved every issue since the mid-1980s, and Francis van Dan (M.A. ’75) of Fridley, Minnesota, (a member since 1979) has never discarded an issue! "Should I seek a particular issue, it may be quite a challenge to find, but it’s there, somewhere. . . ."

Jacquelyn DeGuise (B.S. ’75, M.B.A. ’93) of Arlington Heights, Illinois, says that the sight of Minnesota makes her "anxious to have a fresh cup of coffee and read through the magazine." And like Kenneth Torrance (B.S. ’61, M.S. ’64, Ph.D. ’66) of Ithaca, New York, who says that Minnesota is "like a welcome letter from a friend or classmate," Jerry Scott (B.S. ’75, M.A. ’78) of Aiken, South Carolina, writes that receiving the magazine is "like receiving a letter from back home and you can’t wait to find out what’s been going on and what’s new at the U."

Arnie Ness (B.A. ’59, M.A. ’63, Ph.D. ’75) of Tacoma, Washington, jokes that he hopes to be "around, and healthy, when [the magazine] hits its 200 year birthday." But what resonates throughout the respondents’ birthday wishes is summarized well by Jerry Scott: "It’s this magazine that keeps us connected to the U." And, as Veronica Netteberg Johnson (B.S. ’68) of Austin, Texas, points out, the magazine "keeps us all connected, no matter how far we roam!"

For a staggering 100 years, Minnesota has bound us together with articles and images of pride—and "given me pause to think," as Robert Nyvall (B.S. ’65, Ph.D. ’69) of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, writes. Minnesota gives us, as Edward Landa says, "the sense that I am still part of this great community that is the University of Minnesota." Consistently full of articles about great graduates, like Bataan Death March survivor Phillip Brain (March–April 2002), and great academics, like stem cell researcher Dr. Catherine Verfaillie (January–February 2002), Minnesota inspires each of us to be a better person, to try harder, and to strive to join the many alumni, students, and researchers who have made—and who strive to make—a difference in the world.

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