UMaine’s Fogler Legacy Award honors four generations of Windham family

By Lorraine Glowczak

Greg Morrison, a 2012 Windham High School graduate, had always dreamed of attending the University of Maine in Orono and he was waiting for a response after submitting his application. Despite being accepted by two other colleges, Greg’s heart was heavy since an acceptance letter had not yet arrived from UMaine.

Generations of the Morrison Family of Windham gather to
celebrate being honored as this year's recipient of the
Fogler Legacy Award presented by the University of
Maine Orono to families who have attended and
supported the school over the years. COURTESY PHOTO

“All I ever really wanted is to be a Black Bear,” Greg said at the dinner table one evening to his mother Candace and his father Mark, UMaine Class of 1986. A few days later, Greg was relieved to receive his acceptance letter from UMaine, fulfilling his lifelong dream and following in his family's footsteps. He graduated with a business degree in 2017. His sister, Kristen, a 2008 WHS graduate, also earned a business degree in 2012, marking the fourth generation of Black Bears.

This long-standing Morrison family tradition led the group to be recognized with a special award this past April at the UMaine campus in Orono where they received the Fogler Legacy Award.

Each year, this unique and special award is presented to a family with a strong tradition of attending UMaine, usually spanning at least three generations, where multiple members have demonstrated outstanding service to the university, alumni association, community, and/or their profession.

“I’m proud of my family. I am proud of my heritage.” said Alola Morrison of Windham, a 1959 UMaine graduate who is Greg and Kristen’s grandmother, as well as Mark’s mother. "Growing up in a military family meant we moved frequently for my father's job as a mechanical engineer in the Coast Guard, so I was constantly moving to different towns and attending different schools. I never felt like I had a home base."

But UMaine was the one constant for Alola.

“My father and mother were college sweethearts,” Alola said of her father Alvin Giffin and mother Viola Purinton, both 1931 UMaine graduates. “My parents were highly involved in campus activities during their college years, and they set that example. Mom was a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority and Dad was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity. They remained active in the alumni association for 50 years. We would often return to Maine to visit, and while here, we always stopped by the UMaine campus. I knew I would eventually go to college there, and with some luck and hard work, I did. UMaine was, and still is, my home.”

Much like her parents, Alola met her own sweetheart at UMaine. In 1961, she married Joseph Morrison, UMaine Class of 1959. Unfortunately, he passed away in 2017.

Although Mark Morrison and his siblings grew up close to the UMaine campus in nearby Orrington, they had the same experiences as their mother and father.

“Growing up, my parents and grandparents frequently took us to UMaine to watch many sporting events and attend homecoming weekend, which was always special,” Mark Morrison said. “Just like my mom, I knew UMaine was the school for me.”

He said that as a close-knit family, the bonds and relationships they developed with each other created heartfelt memories and stories and he reflected on two stories that mean the most to the extended Morrison family and those close to them.

“What really amazes me the most is the level of commitment to education my great grandparents had during turbulent times,” he said, speaking of his great grandfather, Dr. Watson Purinton and his wife Nellie Jenness Purinton, who were supporting their children’s education after the Stock Market Crash in October 1929.

“It was during the time of the “Roaring Twenties” which came to a collapse with the Stock Market crash of 1929, creating the Great Depression,” Mark Morrison said. “Watson and Nellie had two children still pursuing their education after the crash. My grandmother Viola was studying Home Economics at UMaine, while her brother William (Class of 1927) was in Medical School at Tufts. It was Watson and Nellie's unwavering commitment to educate their children through college, highly unusual at the time that created the legacy. This led to the culmination of having four generations of UMaine graduates.”

The Morrison/Giffin/Purington family’s dedication to college education continued when the Morrison family faced their own tough times.

“In the summer of 2009, my brother Ken tragically died in a swimming accident while on vacation in Prince Edward Island, leaving three children behind, ages 11, 9, and 5,” Mark said. “The whole family pulled together to support Ken’s three kids as they grew up close by in Biddeford with their mother. We all resolved to see that Ken's kids go on to college. In spite of this huge loss, all three children thrived in school and went on to earn college degrees. His two sons followed the Black Bear tradition, Connor (Class 2017) and Joe (Class 2023), earned engineering degrees while Olivia earned a business degree from St. Joseph's College.”

Although college education was and is important to the Morrison family, Alola recognizes the importance of different paths in life.

“I’m very proud of my family and education, but education isn’t just college,” she said. “Education is in the trades, too. This is just as important. We need each other for a successful society.”

Mark Morrison agreed with his mother saying that having a close relationship with family is one of the biggest factors for their success.

“It is true that we all have individual accomplishments, as we strive to do our best, and also try to do the right thing,” he said. “But we would be far less successful as individuals if it weren't for the love, support, and close relationships we have as a family.” <

Windham’s female veterans share their stories for National Women’s History Month

Recognizing two women veterans, Alola Morrison,
left, and Phyllis Page, both from Windham who have 
shared their achievements, courage and strength as 
each chose a life in the military while at the same
time choosing to be married and mothers.
PHOTO BY LORRAINE GLOWCZAK 

By Lorraine Glowczak

March is Women’s History Month – a time to officially recognize women's contributions to society - contributions that once went unnoticed. The first celebration occurred in 1980 and was dedicated to one week. President Jimmy Carter wrote a message to the nation, designating March 2 to 8, as National Women’s History Week.

In that letter, he said: “From the first settlers who came to our shores, from the first American Indian families who befriended them, men and women have worked together to build this nation. Too often, the women were unsung and sometimes their contributions went unnoticed. But the achievements, leadership, courage, strength and love of the women who built America was as vital as that of the men whose names we know so well.”

Two women veterans, Alola Morrison and Phyllis Page, both of Windham, recently shared their achievements, courage and strength as each chose a life in the military while at the same time choosing a life of marriage and motherhood.

 

Page, born in Farmington, Maine, grew up in a military family, which meant she was always on the move. She attended over 13 different schools during her youth, graduating from Windham High School in 1973. In late fall of 1974, she enlisted in the Navy at Fort Carson in Colorado Springs.

 

“I always knew from a young age that I wanted to be a part of the military - I wanted to travel because there were so many other parts of the world I wanted to see,” Page said.  

Once enlisted, she ‘filled out a dream sheet’ of all the places she hoped to be stationed. Page listed as many west coast locations as possible as she had yet to see the western seaboard.

“Believe it or not, they sent me to Brunswick, Maine,” Page laughed, recalling her disappointment at the time. 

However, her stint in Maine was short-lived. Within a year, Page received orders for a two-year assignment in Cuba. 

“I arrived at Guantanamo Bay in 1977 and was selected for an elite position on the captain’s boat crew,” Page said. “I was the only female on the team and we were in charge of escorting the captain, his family and other dignitaries from one side of the base to the other [by boat]. The ‘normal people’ had to take the ferry.” 

 

In Cuba, Page met her future husband, Andrew Page, a member of the Navy. In 1978, they married and Page retired from the military while her husband remained on active duty. Page became restless as a stay-at-home wife.

 

“I wasn’t content just sitting at home, so I reenlisted in 1980 and relocated with my husband to a base in Virginia,” Page said.

While stationed in Virginia, Page worked as a Dispensing Clerk in the commissary and stayed there until her enlistment was up. After that, she dedicated her life to her husband’s career and raising their four daughters.

 

Morrison’s story begins much like Page’s. She also grew up in a military family, with a father who was enlisted in the Coast Guard. Admiring her father and his dedication, Morrison wanted to follow in his footsteps. Morrison joined The Public Health Service Commissioned Corps – which is currently a federal uniformed service of the U.S Public Health Services that encompasses eight uniformed services of the United States. At the time Morrison joined in 1960, the U.S. Public Health Service was designated as the support health agency for the U.S. Merchant Marines and the U.S. Coast Guard.

 

Before joining Public Health Services, Morrison, who was born in Norfolk, Virginia but moved often, eventually moved to Bangor, with her family, attending the University of Maine-Orono. She worked on a double major in foods/nutrition and home economics, obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in 1959. 

 

“After graduating, I was accepted in a yearlong post-graduate training to become a registered dietitian at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston and applied for a commission in the Public Health Service,” Morrison said. “I became an officer in the fall of 1960 with the rank of Lt. Jr. grade. My major responsibility was to advise patients that needed therapeutic diets. It was a 150-bed hospital that catered mainly to U.S. Coast Guard active and retired personnel and their families.”

 

In 1962, Morrison married her college sweetheart, Joseph, and together they moved back to Bangor to be near his family and his job as a principal of two schools. At this time, Morrison resigned from her commission and raised a family, eventually enlisting into the Navy Reserves.

 

“I joined the U.S. Army Reserves in l974 with the rank of Captain,” Morrison said. “The main unit was out of Auburn, 1125th Medical Unit Section, but my monthly drills were in Bangor at the Army Reserve Center and St. Joseph Hospital. I became a Major before I retired with 12 years in the Army Reserve.”

 

Both Morrison and Page encourage women to join the armed forces if they consider it but recommend talking to other women who have been or still are in the military.

 

“It is a great opportunity for women, especially if you enlist for a specific school or area of interest such as communications, radar technology, etc.” Page said. 

 

The most crucial thing Page and Morrison have gathered from their time and experiences in the military, and perhaps most proud of, is their level of resiliency - making do with very little.

 

“We can stand on our own two feet,” they said proudly.

This strength, courage, leadership and achievement in women are recognized and honored more and more, thanks to the celebration of women’s contributions to society. National Women’s History Month gives women like Morrison and Page an opportunity to share their stories that otherwise may all have been left unsaid.

 

Page and Morrison are both members of American Legion Post 148 in Windham where Morrison is the Second Vice Commander.<