LOCAL/S TATE The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, February 2, 2000 - 5 'U' holds memorial for former CFO By Jeannie Baumann Daily Staff Reporter A memorial service is scheduled for today in honor of former University Vice President Wilbur Pierpont, who died last week at age 85 from a heart attack while playing golf near his home in Sarasota, Fla. Pierpont served as the University's chief financial officer from 1951 to 1977. "He established the financial strength of the University and called forth the highest standards of professionalism from all those who worked in business and finance at the University of Michi- gan," said Robert Kasdin, the Universi- ty's current chief financial officer. Prior to becoming vice president, Pierpont served as the University's controller as well as a professor in the School of Business Administration. After his term as chief financial officer ended, he continued to teach account- ing until officially retiring from the University in 1980. Economics and Public Policy Prof Paul McCracken, who worked with a Pierpont, said in a written statement that Pierpont is generally considered the best business vice president of any university in the country. "He understood how to run a tight ship in terms of management, and he understood it was not the business vice president's job to determine the pro- gram," McCracken said. Pierpont is survived by his wife Maxine, two children and three grand- children. Former University President Robben Fleming, whose term lasted from 1968 to 1978, also praised Pierpont's job as chief financial offi- "Bill always started from a position that if a person had a good idea, he'd support it " - Robben Fleming Former University president cer. "It is easy for someone who is a chief financial officer to become so careful that it is hard to get changes through," Fleming said in a written statement. "Bill always started from a position that if a person had a good idea, he would support it. He had the trust and confidence of the (University Board of) Regents, which is priceless for any president." In 1996, the North Campus Com- mons building was dedicated in honor of Pierpont. During his tenure as vice president, the University purchased the land that became North Campus. The School of Business Administra- tion also has a professorship named in his honor. "The greatest honor of my career has been to hold the Wilbur K. Pierpont Collegiate Professorship," Business School Dean B. Joseph White said. The memorial service is planned for 2 p.m. today at the First United Methodist Church, located at 120 S. State St., with a reception to follow the service. Shadow-gazing Some of the many legends surrounding Groundhog's Day: W In America: 'if the sun shines on Groundhog Day, half the fuel, half the hay. a In Scotland: "If Candlemas Day is bright and clear, there'll be two winters in the year." a In Germany: "For as the sun shines on Candlemas Day, so far will the snow swirl until May. For as the snow blows on Candlemas Day, so far will the sun shine before May.' i Old English Saying: "if Can- diemas be fair and bright, win- ter has another flight. If Candlemas brings clouds and rain, winter will not come again'" Phil's Record since 1887: i Saw Shadow: 89 times £ No Shadow: 14 times: E No Record: 9 times Source: Punxsutawney Ph i website The world's smallest and fuzziest weatherman will make his appearance today on a holiday named for the rodent. Groundhog's Day, a celebration taken from ancient pagan and Christ- ian celebrations, was thought to commemorate the midpoint between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. "The equinox is when the sun cross- es the equator," astronomy associate Prof. Richard Sears said. "In the Northern Hemisphere the days start getting longer." The solstice is when the sun reaches its northern or southernmost point. "Feb. 2 has no significance," Sears said "It's not quite the midpoint" The Pennsylvania Dutch Folklore Center at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster is the home of the earliest known documented ref- erence to a Groundhog's Day tradi- tion. "It probably was a pagan tradition that got intertwined into the Christian religion," Lancaster County historian Jack Loose said. Storekeeper James Morris, in his 1841 diary, described a Groundhog's By Lindsey Alpert Daily Staff Reporte Phil poised for prediction Day tradition and its use as an indi- cation of the upcoming month's weather. "Groundhog's Day was called Candlemas Day, which goes back to the Middle Ages. It was celebrated as one of the famous feast days," Loose said. Christianized Ronans brought the tradition to the Germans during the first millennium, who centuries later became the earliest settlers of Pennsyl- vania. Loose said a badger was original- ly used instead of a groundhog, but since there was an abundance of groundhogs in Pennsylvania, the tra- dition of using the furry creature stuck. As the story goes, if a groundhog sees its shadow, there will be six more bitter weeks of winter. But if the groundhog does not see his shadow, spring is right around the corner. The groundhog, a member of the squirrel family, generally hibernates in the winter but reawakens in Feb- ruary. One of the most famous groundhogs is Pennsylvania's Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers. Sage of Sages. Prognos- ticator of Prognosticators and Weather Prophet Extraordinary - or "Phil" for short. Phil has predicted the weather since 1887 in Punxsutawney, about an hour northeast of Pittsburgh. The ball of fur has had the privi- lege of meeting President Reagan in the Oval Office, has been a guest on the Oprah Winfrey Show and even. had a movie based him - the 1994 movie "Groundhog's Day." Today nearly 30,000 people will go t Gobbler's Nob in Punx- sutawney, where Phil is placed in a heated burrow and is then taken out at 7:25 a.m. to make his official weather prediction. During the rest of the year, Phil is kept at the Punxsutawney Public Library, where the 15-pound groundhog feasts on dog food and ice cream. "The people that celebrate Ground- hog's Day are basically social organi- zations who like to get together and have a fun time," Loose said. The weather forecast for Pennsylva- nia tomorrow includes partly cloudy. skies with a high temperature of 3, degrees, so the groundhog might not see his shadow. "I'm just worried that he won't be able to pop out," LSA senior Julia. Maycock said. "I bet he's frozen underground." WANT To SHOOT THE BACKSTR T BoYS JOIN DAILY PHOTO. INTERViEW SESSIONS START AT 7 P.M. A' THE DAILY. 420 MAYNARD ST. BTHERE. : ., * Combine travel and study * Open Enrollment * Earn University credit * Financial aid is available r i There are those who shy away from challenges. And then there are those who travel 9,000 miles looking for them. Selecting now for spring and summer 2000 departures! 4 w ,. University of California Berkeley Summer Sessions INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS 2000 WHERE ARE tGQIN G THIS SUMMER? Guanajuato, Mexicw*June 19-July 14 Spanishlanguage & Latin culture Barbados, West Indies July 10-August 8 Caribbean education, culture, and politics Florence, Italy'July 6-August 11 Italian language & culture Soih Afirica"June 19-July17 Souh AfrcanPolitics Madrid, Spain"July 3-August 4 ""pani"clture and civilization The Netherlands/Belgium July 6-August 4 Dutch and Flemidhhistory, art, and literature Havana, Cuba'July 3-August 4 Cuban history,cualture, and politics Paris, FranceJuly 5-August 9 French language &culture London,EnglandJune 3o-July 28 Aeting and London theatre Information Meeting Tuesday, February 8 7:00 PM International Center,Room 9 For more information, www.peacecorps.gov; 800-424-8580 - _, call Nancy Parachini at (734) 647-2182 or Peace.Corps@umich.edu. Hj 4 ri iw r i r w i , . . . 'R q... .