Daddy was a trustee at Penn State beginning in 1926. I took his place on the Board of Trustees in 1949. I was on the board for nine years.

While I was a trustee at Penn State in 1951, I invited Milton Eisenhower, who was president of Penn State, to come to Chester County. I had him down to a Rotary meeting and to our Farmers Day program. I enjoyed working with him; he was a very fine man.

I met his brother when I was at the university campus. Dwight Eisenhower was president of the United States while his brother Milton was at Penn State. I’ll tell you a cute story about that.

While Milton was at Penn State his wife died. We built an all-faith chapel, and there was no name for the chapel. The trustees secretly decided to name it after Milton’s late wife, Helen Eakin Eisenhower. We had a dedication of that chapel, and Dwight Eisenhower was the speaker. A security rope surrounded the area where Dwight was speaking and the chair where he was sitting. Nobody was supposed to be inside that circle.

Our children were there, and Susie was probably five. The service was over, and when Dwight Eisenhower walked out, Susie quickly ran under the rope and sat on that chair.

When she came back, she said, “Mother, don’t ever wash this dress!”

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