By John Boccacino ’03
Syracuse University boasts more than 241,000 living alumni across the world, with tens of thousands more alumni having studied at SU since the school’s founding in 1870.
Attending SU can be a rite of passage for many families, with proud mothers and fathers passing on their love of Syracuse and their favorite campus traditions to their sons and daughters.
SU is home to thousands of legacy families, including three whose dedication and passion for Syracuse is told below.
Syracuse University’s Office of Alumni Engagement knows there are many more legacy families out there. Do you want to share your Orange Legacy story? Email alumni@syr.edu.
More Than 100 Years of Orange
Growing up in Syracuse, Walter Zimdahl Jr. ’68 needed no introduction to Syracuse University. He grew up hearing the stories about the immense value of an SU degree, and for good reason: dating back to the first World War, 21 members of Zimdahl’s family have attended SU.
That’s five generations of proud SU alumni in one family.
It’s no wonder that Zimdahl immediately felt at home the first time he remembers stepping onto SU’s campus as a child, when his parents took him to an SU-Army football game in Archbold Stadium.
“I knew about Syracuse University from an early age. I didn’t really know my father was an All-American football player, but back in the 1950s when I was in middle school, we went to the Army-SU football game and it was the beginning of my love of SU,” Zimdahl Jr. said.
Zimdahl Jr.’s family ties to SU run deep, dating back to his great grandfather, Stephen Groner, who graduated from SU way back in 1915. Zimdah Jr.’s grandfather, Raymond C. Groner, served in World War I and eventually earned his mechanical engineering degree in 1918. Raymond met his wife, Mae (Burchit) Groner ’20, at SU, and soon the two were married.
Zimdahl Jr.’s father, Walter Sr., was an All-American running back for the SU football team. Like his father, Walter Sr. met his future wife, Hellen (Groner) Mulvihill ’40, on the Hill, and the two quickly fell in love and were married.
Sense a theme in the Groner/Zimdahl family tree?
Not to be outdone, when it was his turn to apply for college, Zimdahl’s list of possible schools included SU and, well, SU was really his first, second, and third choice. One day during his senior year of high school, Walter Jr. came home and found a letter from Syracuse University atop the pile of mail.
“It was my SU acceptance letter, and I was really blown away by the letter,” Zimdahl Jr. said.
“I just knew that, with my family’s history at SU, I had to go there. I wanted to play sports and my father took me to see legendary SU football coach Ben Schwartzwalder. I’ll never forget walking into his office. It was an amazing feeling knowing I was heading to the same school where many of my family members not only attended, but met their future husbands or wives.”
Zimdahl Jr. went on to excel on the SU track and field team, participating in the pole vault, while excelling in the classroom as a biology major. He would go on to earn a doctor of dental surgery (DDS) degree from the University at Buffalo in 1974.
Much like his father and grandfather before him, Syracuse introduced Zimdahl Jr. to his future wife, Susan, a fellow member of the Class of 1968. The two were married and raised three children—Jason ’00, Lynsey ’01, and Shelby ’04—who would follow in their parents’ footsteps by attending SU.
Before each of his children submitted their applications to SU, Zimdahl Jr. made sure to include two items: a family photo of everyone sporting their best SU gear (taken before the Orange football team played Auburn in the 1988 Sugar Bowl), and a piece of paper listing every member of his family who attended SU.
“We’re all often called on by families who are interested in their child attending SU to give them advice on applying and life on the Hill,” said Lynsey (Zimdahl) Weaver. “My family has been assisting Western New York families for decades, whether serving as official alumni representatives, coaching incoming students at our annual New Student Send-Off, planning the next alumni club event, or serving as a board member. I’ve also hired a few SU alumni as staff and interns, knowing they all have a common work ethic. We represent a family who has a deep pride in what we’ve contributed to the greater Syracuse University family.”
Walter Jr., Susan, and Lynsey have each served as president of the Syracuse University Alumni Club of Western New York, and the family is actively involved in current alumni club events.
Every time Lynsey and her family visit the Carrier Dome for a basketball, football, or lacrosse game, they have a secret tradition: they walk around the concourse of the Dome until they come to a wall adorned with SU memorabilia. One item in particular has special meaning for Lynsey’s family—a football with the word “Zimdahl” written across the ball.
Walter Sr. autographed that ball during his SU playing days before embarking on a long, successful career as a cardiologist. Seeing the football is inspirational for Lynsey, who hopes to keep bringing future generations of her family to the Dome to learn about their place at SU.
“The pride we have in Syracuse University; we just bleed orange. Our friends are probably sick of hearing about Syracuse, but we just love it,” said Walter Jr., who practices dentistry in Williamsville, New York, about 12 miles east of Buffalo.
“For us to have the same Syracuse connection means everything to me. Syracuse has benefited every one of us in our lives, and getting to share my memories of SU with my children is a special bond for us.”
Pictured are (from left to right) Lynsey (Zimdahl) Weaver ’01, Shelby Zimdahl ’04, and Jason Zimdahl ’00.
Randall Johnson ’18
Much like the Zimdahl’s, Johnson grew up surrounded by Syracuse University. Both of his parents, Alvin ’80 and Sarine Johnson ’82, graduated from SU, as did his sisters, Ashley ’15 and Capri ’17. Johnson also heard about the benefits of an SU education from his cousin Imani Wallace ’16, uncle Winston Johnson ’80, and aunt Debra Wallace ’80.
But when Randall Johnson was weighing his college options, his heart was not set on becoming an Orange man. Coming from a proud Orange family actually deterred Johnson from making SU his collegiate choice.
Rather, Johnson, who was an aspiring track and field athlete, received recruiting attention from the University of Connecticut and Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, so he opted to enroll at UConn, one of SU’s athletic rivals from the Big East days.
“I told my mom that I really didn’t want to go to Syracuse because everyone in my family went there and I really wanted to pave my own way and form my own path,” Johnson said.
However, Johnson quickly realized that UConn wasn’t the right fit for him, and he transferred to Lincoln College of New England for his second semester of his freshman year. One weekend, while contemplating his future, Johnson made his way to SU for a visit with his older sister, Ashley, and Imani Wallace.
Having given SU a second chance, Johnson became enamored with the campus.
“My sister and my cousin were recruiting me to come to Syracuse, and it worked,” said Johnson, who is studying international relations in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, while competing in the high jump and the long jump for the Orange track and field team.
“Having that perspective—having gone to two different schools before reconsidering Syracuse—definitely helped and made it an easy decision to transfer to SU. Syracuse feels like home to me. It’s the environment here, it’s very welcoming and we have a beautiful campus that is easy to navigate. Plus, the sports fans are more passionate here than they were at UConn.”
Growing up, Johnson recalls his mother and father sharing stories from their time on campus. They were college sweethearts, and Johnson learned all about the significant role the campus played in their relationship.
While his father passed away when he was just 13 years old, Johnson knows his decision to join Syracuse would have made his dad proud.
“My mom and the rest of my family were very excited that I was going to continue the family legacy at Syracuse,” Johnson said.
“This is a very special bond that we all share, and I’m thankful for that. We have this one thing in common, and we always have so much to talk about when we get together. We all had slightly different experiences, but here I am walking the same path and taking classes in the same buildings many of my family members.”
Lisa (Perras) Williams ’88
When Perras was a third-grader living in Bedford, New Hampshire, she became friends with Rick Williams ’88, one of her classmates, but the friendship was short lived, as Williams and his family moved to Japan after his father was promoted.
Perras said the original plan was for Rick and his family to come back to Bedford in three years, but 10 years passed, and the two childhood friends didn’t see each other again…until one day on the Mount at Syracuse University.
Lisa was living in Flint Hall when she struck up a conversation with a pair of freshmen on her floor, and one of the men turned out to be Rick.
The two quickly rekindled their friendship, and began dating. They graduated from SU and were married in 1991. A son, Dylan was born in 1998, and was almost immediately subjected to his parents’ affinity for SU.
When Carmelo Anthony and Gerry McNamara led the Orange to the NCAA men’s basketball championship in 2003, five-year old Dylan was with his parents as they celebrated on campus.
His parents frequently make the trek from their home in Manalapan, New Jersey, back to campus for Orange Central, Syracuse’s reunion and homecoming celebration. Many times, Dylan accompanied them, decked out in Orange.
As the 2017-18 fall semester is about to begin, Dylan, a sophomore, is studying forensic science in the College of Arts and Sciences.
“Syracuse is a great school, and we love having that bond in our family,” said Lisa Williams, who earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the College of Arts and Sciences.
“Other couples talk about their college experiences, but we went through those moments together, which makes it all that much more special. It was a little strange on move-in day when we moved Dylan into Shaw Hall. I had never been to Shaw the entire time I was on campus, but now it’s special for Dylan to share his Syracuse experiences with his parents.”
Dylan and his parents attended a legacy event on campus during his freshman year, where the family received their legacy pins, just the latest chapter in their proud history as a ’Cuse family.
“Dylan has picked up on that special bond,” Lisa Williams said. “He wears his legacy pin all the time. He’s proud of SU and we’re proud of him. We can all be excited to be part of the same team.”
Pictured are (from left) Rick Williams ’88, Lisa (Perras) Williams ’88, and Dylan Williams ’20.