April 21, 2014 - by Jay Hamburg

A decades-long love of music shared by a former student and her mentor inspires the

creation of the new series.

The story behind a new concert series at Rollins is the tale of how one former transfer student and her now 98-

year-old Rollins mentor shared a love of organ music they heard in the campus chapel. It’s also a testament to

the power of that instrument to reverberate across more than six decades and change lives.

Christopher Hulihan perform s the inaugural guest organist in Know les Mem orial Chapel. (Photo by Scott Cook)

New Concert Series ShowcasesRollins’ Famous Pipe Organ

Rollins.edu Evening School Graduate Business School R-Net Community Jobs Directory Library

Faith Eme ny Conge r '54 in he r stude nt ye ars at Rollins. (Photo

courte sy of Rollins Archive s)

The opening performance of the series starts at 4 p.m. on April 13 in the Knowles Memorial Chapel with one of

the nation’s premier organists, Christopher Houlihan, as the inaugural guest musician.

Officially known as The Faith Emeny Conger ’54 Visiting Organist Concert Series in Honor of John Oliver Rich

’38, the title captures the student-mentor relationship at the heart of the new event. But the inspiration for it

began more than 60 years ago when orange groves still encircled much of Winter Park and Orlando.

Back in 1951, Faith Emeny Conger ’54 was a student

looking for a new college in an era when transferring

often came with negative connotations. She also was

a young adult shaken by a family tragedy that made

her wonder about going to college at all.

Yet that made her exactly the type of person that

John Oliver Rich ’38, then dean of admissions, liked

to bring to campus—a smart student in need of a

new start. The outgoing man, whom friends called

Jack, reached out to her family and suggested that

although it was natural to want to keep the young

woman close to home, it was now more important

than ever for Faith to revive her education

“Jack was willing to take in all those people,” says

Conger, whose recent gift endows the ongoing series

in honor of her mentor who eased her transition to

Rollins and gave guidance and support.

News Map Apply Now

Jack Rich '38, former dean of admiss ions at Rollins College. (Photo courtesy of Rollins Archives)

Conger wanted to honor her mentor with the concert series because she never forgot his advice or his love of

pipe organ music. Rich so loved the majestic sounds that he not only attended concerts but, according to his

family, he often slipped into the chapel during weddings, sitting in the back to hear the renowned Ernest M.

Skinner pipe organ in action.

“It’s a Stradivarius among organs,” says Philip Rich ’78 ’86MBA. “And it’s an important place to us. Our father

has a very great love for Rollins, and at the center of that is the chapel. And at the heart of the chapel is the

organ.” The family hopes to bring Jack, health permitting, to the concert.

During her student days, Conger found the setting becoming a central spot for her, too. The music was calming.

“I would just go and sit in the chapel. It was serene and I could just think about good things.”

As she grew to know the Rich family better, she babysat the youngsters and became godmother to the oldest

son, Jonathan. Years later, she learned that Rich had been looking out for her at Rollins. He had checked to

make sure she was taking her meals, going to class, and making friends.

One of those friends turned out to be Fred Rogers ’51. The music major, who would be famous as TV’s Mister

Rogers, was another student recruited by Rich. Conger recalls that one day, Rogers struck up a conversation

with her. “He had heard about my loss and he said, ‘Will you come and listen to my recital?’ ”

Faith Eme ny Conge r '54 in he r stude nt-te aching days. (Photo

courte sy of Rollins Archive s)

She did and the two remained friends until Rogers

died in 2003. Conger, who lives in Princeton, New

Jersey, also stayed in touch with the Rich family and

knew of their ongoing concern for the organ. In the

late 1990s, Rich led a drive to restore the

instrument built in 1932. His three sons Jonathan,

Philip, and Jeffrey ’80 grew up attending as many

concerts as their dad could take them to. If they

ever got bored, they played outside the chapel while

their father listened inside.

Today, the former dean of admissions cannot

always recall every detail from his nearly century of

living, but he lit up when Jonathan mentioned

Conger’s name, saying, “Faith has been like a

daughter to me. There are many things I don’t

remember at my age, but I just know I love her very

much.”

Jack Rich '38 enjoys a front row seat at the vis iting organ concert series established in his honor. (Photo by Scott Cook)

As for Conger, she will always recall that “big smile every time I appeared at his office doorway, no matter if I

organ knowle s me morial chape l music alumni

Tags

You might also like

What Itzhak Perlman Listens To

Jessye Norman Shares Insights on a Creative Life

was complaining or not. He was very caring about the people he admitted.”

Along with the music they heard together long ago, Conger can still hear Rich’s confident, friendly voice greeting

her at that office door, booming out in that way he had, “Faith, hello!”

ROLLINS360

Home

Academics & Research

Arts & Culture

College News

Sports

People

NEWS CENTER

Events

For The Media

Submit News

Rollins in the News

Remembering David Erdmann (1944-2013)

ABOUT & CONTACT

Office of Marketing & Communications

A to Z Index

Feedback

Rollins.edu

SOCIAL

2 0 1 4 Ro l l i n s Co l l e g e | 1 0 0 0 Ho l t Ave n u e , Wi n te r Pa rk, FL 3 2 7 8 9 | 4 0 7 .6 4 6 .2 0 0 0

©