By Cassidy Grom | Echo
She's the one who brought Bahamian students to campus, made "better-than-sex pie," and lived beside the pink barns on Highway 26.
Her name was LaRita, and now she has a building named after her, too.
On Saturday at 3 p.m., students, guests and grandparents gathered in the Chapel to celebrate the official dedication of the LaRita R. Boren Campus Center.
President Gene Habecker said he had never seen the Board of Trustees respond as quickly as they did when the new Campus Center name was suggested. "It was the right decision," he said.
LaRita's son Lael Boren spoke about his mother's various traits. According to Lael, LaRita was an encourager. "Sometimes that encouragement was gentle and kind, sometimes that encouragement was a little more forceful," he said. Lael remembers LaRita telling his high school principal that he would graduate no matter what. "And I did," he said. "Barely."
Lael recounted the numerous times LaRita hosted parties and showed immense hospitality. Lael laughed as he told the audience about her culinary creations. He insisted LaRita made "better-than-sex" pie just so she could see guests' expressions when they asked what the chocolate dessert was called.
Darnell Bain, a Bahamian student who graduated in 1987, agreed LaRita always had welcoming arms. Bain said LaRita checked on her to make sure she had proper winter attire and invited Bain and other Bahamian students on hayrides.
LaRita and her husband, Leland Boren, were heavily involved with the Lyford Cay Foundation, which helps thousands of Bahamians like Bain to receive a college education.
Lael said his mom "didn't mind being the brunt of jokes to get a chuckle." And senior Samantha Bowser, LaRita's granddaughter, said LaRita had impeccable fashion, a commitment to lipstick and an obsession with Red Bull.
LaRita was loved by her family, as evinced in the bright pink barns on Highway 26. Lael said his father painted the barns to help his mother feel at home. The color was originally supposed to be closer to red to match the soil from LaRita's hometown, Rush Spring, Oklahoma. The color turned out much more pink than expected but LaRita loved it anyway. "As an added bonus, it really helps our family when we have to give directions to our home," Lael said.
President Gene Habecker explained that just as LaRita lovingly embraced Taylor and its students, the Campus Center surrounds Rediger Auditorium, the heart of campus. Habecker said the $20 million-plus project fulfilled former president Milo Rediger's vision of the "new Taylor."
