‘LSC 7’ Jim Hindman is one of the first to hold wedding reception in student center

On Feb. 10, 1962, Jim and Diane Hindman became one of the first couples to host their wedding reception in the Lory Student Center at Colorado State University.

After getting married in the Danforth Chapel, the couple hosted their reception in the Longs Peak Dining Room.  To add to the CSU charm, the Hindmans had their wedding cake specially designed by LSC Food Services.

“It was a very elegant room with a beautiful view of the mountains,” said Jim Hindman.  He recalled that, “The cake was pretty good!”

This is not Jim Hindman’s only special connection to Colorado State University or the Lory Student Center.  In 1960, Hindman was one of the seven members of the “LSC 7,” a group of student leaders featured in front of the 1960 LSC ground-breaking photo – and that moment was just the tip of his CSU iceberg.

As a student in the first class to graduate under the “Colorado State University” title, Hindman was highly involved on campus.  Before Hindman’s class, CSU was known as Colorado A&M.  Along with serving as an editor for the Rocky Mountain Collegian, Hindman held membership in the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity.  According to Hindman, his Collegian experience was a valuable one.“I learned a lot about hard work and responsibility.  I had never worked as hard in my life then when I worked at the Collegian,” Hindman said.

Hindman was also a dedicated Reserve Officers’ Training Corps cadet; he opted for “Advanced ROTC,” going beyond the required two-year commitment.  After graduation he served in the Army for two years at Fort Hood, Texas.  In 1962, Jim was deployed to Port Everglades, Florida as part of a back-up force that would follow and assist the Marines should the United States decide to invade Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

If the talks between the US and Russia failed, Hindman would have been part of a bombing mission to take out nuclear missile bases in Cuba. Hindman’s wife feared she would be a very young widow as Hindman sat, on a battleship, two hours from nuclear war.  The Cuban Missile Crisis was resolved and Hindman returned home safely, having felt like he contributed to a significant event in US history.

Colorado State University’s legacy has left a stamp on the Hindmans, who met and married on campus.  This year, CSU is celebrating an important part of its legacy:  the Lory Student Center’s 50th Anniversary.  The Hindmans may be a part of a select group to have met at CSU, married on campus, and celebrated their union at the student center, but they are not the only individuals the building’s legacy has touched.

Over the last 50 years, the student center has developed into a student-driven, student-committed, and even student-operated public building.  In the celebration of its 50th birthday, the LSC wants to remember the beautiful history that fills its halls.  This is especially important in the upcoming LSC revitalization process, which will begin Spring 2013.

While the building is undergoing major changes in 2013, the Lory Student Center will carry with it 50 years of decade-defining moments that have shaped Colorado State University and the lives of its students and staff.

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