Messenger - Vol. 2, No. 3, Page 31 Summer 1993 Alumni Profile: Another Smith goes to nursing They say that people tend to follow in the footsteps of those they respect and admire. This seems particularly true for the children of Joseph and Elaine Smith Sr. of Lewes, Del. All six of their children are Delaware graduates, five of them with degrees in nursing. The most recent Fightin' Blue Hen, Joseph Smith Jr., received his nursing degree May 29. The entire family was present to see the last member of this long, blue-and-gold line. Smith's five sisters, who also helped make up the 22 consecutive years of Delaware study, include Katherine Smith Lowe, Delaware '75; Mariann Smith Bunting, Delaware '77 '81M; Patricia Smith Vattilana, Delaware '80; Sharon Smith Gandolfo, Delaware '82; and Marguerite Smith Diehl, Delaware '83. Bunting, a school teacher with a degree in education, was the only Smith who did not matriculate through the College of Nursing. Brother-in-law William Lowe graduated from Delaware in 1974, and another in-law, Joseph Vattilana, received his doctorate in public administration May 29. Finally, Karen Furaro, Joe Jr.'s fiancee, is a member of the Class of 1992. Smith admitted that his sisters influenced his decision of a college. "There was no other school but U.D.," he says. Seeing the professional success of his four sisters helped him make the decision to switch from undeclared to education and finally to focus on a career in the health field. The only drawback of having so many members of the same family in one profession, says Joe Jr., is that at family gatherings, nursing is all they end up talking about. -Jenni Collins, Delaware '83