Students, faculty and staff gathered outside McEwen dining hall to dedicate Manfuso Plaza, which honors the late John A. “Tommy” Manfuso. Details...
“All of us feel the power of community on this campus every day,” said President Leo M. Lambert. “What we need are places to gather. We’re here today to dedicate one of those special places on campus.”
Lambert thanked the Manfuso family for their generosity and for their vision in making their gift to the conservancy endowment, which he said will sustain the beauty of the campus for generations. He said increasing endowment for long-term facility maintenance is an important part of Elon’s upcoming fundraising campaign.
Paul Parsons, dean of Elon’s School of Communications, told the crowd that his office window faces Manfuso Plaza and that he often watches longingly as students gather to sip lattes or eat French fries. “I’ve yearned to come out on the plaza at that moment to join them,” he said, smiling.
Parsons said students also discuss current events or debate issues of the day at Manfuso Plaza. “This is what the college experience is all about,” he said. “This plaza is the heart of this side of campus. It is the very center of our world.”
Manfuso Plaza was built three years ago of approximately 20,000 bricks. In addition to a student gathering place, the plaza will be used for university events and receptions.
Yardley Manfuso, John’s wife, and their daughters, Susan Fuge Faries of Potomac, Md., and Barbara M. Appleby, made their gift through the Thomas Allen Manfuso Foundation, which is named in memory of the Manfusos’ son.
“This is a great pleasure to be involved in something that is so much at the heart of Elon,” Yardley Manfuso said.
She said her family has been impressed with Elon and the excellent opportunities given to her granddaughter, Ali, who is a senior. She recalled visiting Ali with her husband and how excited Ali was to give them a campus tour. “She is so thrilled with Elon, and her enthusiasm rubbed off on the rest of the family,” Yardley said. “She has gained so much and made so many friends.”
John Manfuso was very close to Ali, who was named Susan Allen Fuge in memory of the Manfusos’ son.
Following his graduation from Bowdoin College in 1951, John Manfuso served as a second lieutenant in the Army from 1951 to 1953. He enjoyed a successful career with the pharmaceutical company Burton, Parsons & Co., and later joined his brother, Bob, and two friends to launch Four Brothers Stable, a horse breeding and racing partnership that produced several stakes winners. His passion for horse racing led him to join his brother and others in the management team that operated the Laurel and Pimlico racetracks in Maryland from 1985 to 1990.