Roger and Dottie at the cake cutting ceremony. Courtesy of Danica Chang.

11 years. How long is 11 years? Do you remember where you were 11 years ago?

11 years ago, I just moved to South Africa with my family and started high school. English was a language that I had almost zero fluency in and coming to MIT for graduate school was something that I did not even remotely think of. But on the other side of the globe, a new graduate dormitory had just been built on the corner of Sidney and Pacific Streets in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Since its establishment, Roger and Dottie Mark have been the Housemasters of Sidney-Pacific. They dedicated the next 11 years to SP, turning it from a residence hall into a graduate community. During these 11 years, they have met with thousands of graduate students coming from all over the world, attended hundreds of SP brunches and guided countless SP officers to build “the best graduate community in the world” as Roger called it. But just as in every gathering, there comes a time when we have to say farewell. After a decade of advising and caring, Roger and Dottie are stepping down from the Housemaster positions this summer.

On June 15, 2013, SP held a farewell party to celebrate Roger and Dottie’s contribution to our community in the past 11 years. Many SP alumni came back and shared their personal stories about Roger and Dottie. Their stories gave us a deeper understanding of Roger and Dottie’s personalities. Roger has always been the wisdom tree of SP. He is always willing to give invaluable advice to residents on how to handle both work and life situations.

Past and present SP residents gathered to celebrate Roger and Dottie’s contribution to the community. Courtesy of Danica Chang.

His practical personality also inspired past and present SPECs to run their meetings efficiently and have things done on time. On the other hand, Dottie has a gentle heart and always cares about our well-being. She makes sure that we are living a healthy life and always provides more than enough food during meetings. Together, they are like our grandparents. Their love, caring and passion to cultivate leaders have undoubtedly shaped our community. Because of them, SP is more than a building with rooms. Because of them, SP becomes our home away from home.

In the spirit of contribution and community building, the SP government has established the Roger and Dottie Mark Award for outstanding contributions to our community by a first year resident. This award will be presented annually at the nomination dinner. This year, the award went to Frank Wang. Frank has been actively participating or organizing SPICE meetings since he came to SP. In the spring semester, he became one of the web chairs and helped to improve the security of our website.

Ribbon cutting ceremony for the renaming of the MP room to Roger and Dorothy Mark Multipurpose Room. Courtesy of Danica Chang.

The SP government also renamed the MP room as the Roger and Dorothy Mark Multipurpose Room in recognition of their exemplary services as Housemasters of the SP graduate community.  As the founding Housemasters, they created a vibrant community renowned for its welcoming atmosphere, outstanding residential life programs and strong tradition of student leadership. The Mark room will forever stand as a tribute to their legacy and inestimable impact on our community.

The evening ended with a standing ovation and toasts to Roger and Dottie. Farewell! We congratulate you as you move into the next chapter of your life and we thank you for all you have done for us in the past. Although Roger and Dottie are no longer living in SP, their legacy continues. Just as Roger has said, the SP community has built a strong momentum that our government will continue on its excellence as we move into a new era.

By Steven (Shiou-chi) Chang, VP of Information