For University of Delaware alumni John and Sharon Riley of Greenville, Del., UD has been a 35-year family affair. The tradition was reinforced Jan. 8 when their third and youngest child, Carie, received her bachelor’s degree at the Bob Carpenter Sports/Convocation Center and joined her parents and siblings, Amy and Tim, to make it a thoroughly true Blue Hen family.

The entire family attended Winter Commencement ceremonies and cheered as Carie received her degree in fashion merchandising. Friends and relatives, including Amy’s cousin, Katie O’Leary Battaglia, and her husband, Russ, both UD alumni from New York, later joined the family for a celebration in Greenville.

“I feel very honored to be carrying on the UD tradition that was started by my parents,” Carie says. “My parents, my sister and my brother are all very successful today due, in part, to the education they received and the experiences they had at UD. I just hope that I can follow in their footsteps.”

John and Sharon Riley first met at UD’s student center in 1965. John, a former captain of the golf team, graduated in 1968 with a degree in history, while Sharon, who was a Blue Hen cheerleader, earned her degree in physical education in 1969. Today, John is the director of public affairs at Hercules Inc., and Sharon, a senior claims examiner at AIG Insurance, serves on the UD Alumni Association board.

Their first child, Amy, who was a diver on the University’s swim team, graduated in 1995 with a degree in biology and now lives in Ridgewood, N.J., with her husband, Jim Clements, and their two daughters, Hailey and Ava Anne. Amy owns and operates a fitness business, Stroller Strides.

Tim, of Bridgewater, N.J., who was a member of the golf team, received a degree in sociology in 1999. He is a retail credit analyst for Mercedes Benz of North America in Parsippany, N.J.

“It is a unique thing knowing that everyone in our family has now graduated from UD,” Amy says. “It goes to show what a great school it must be if all of us wanted to attend school there.”

The excitement, John says, also marks the end of an era. “We are very pleased for Carie, but also a little sad,” he says. “In addition to the time Sharon and I spent at UD, we have a had a son or daughter on campus for most of the last 14 years.”

Sharon says the sight of students in gowns gathered at the Bob Carpenter Sports/Convocation was a nostalgic experience that brought back memories of her own and John’s graduations. “We’ve done this a few times but it feels different every time,” she says. “We usually come to sports events, and we’ve been involved in various fund-raising events for the athletics program over the years, particularly the golf team, so we’ll always be part of the UD community.”

Tim says the reason behind the family’s deep involvement with UD is simple: “When we find something good, we stick to it. My experience at the University of Delaware also helped me get to where I am today.”

Carie, who worked as administrative assistant at the Delaware Biotechnology Institute for more than four years and interned for Delaware Sen. Tom Carper in Washington, D.C., last summer, says the wealth of her education both in and out of class has prepared her for a variety of career possibilities.

“My four-and-a-half years at UD were definitely the best of my life,” she says. “I met amazing people and created long-lasting memories. Being a sister in Chi Omega sorority provided me with the opportunity to make lifelong friends, become more involved in activities around campus and participate in numerous philanthropic events.”