The First Is History
By: Jennifer Herseim, Photos by: Rob Felt | Categories: Alumni Celebrations
To commemorate the work and honor Marilyn Somers for her unwavering dedication to preserving the history of the Institute, the Marilyn Somers Living History Program Collection, 1994-2020 has been unveiled. The collection is housed in the Georgia Tech Archives and Special Collections and can be found at Collection: Marilyn Somers Living History Program Collection | Archives & Special Collections (gatech.edu)
Somers interviewed past presidents, astronauts, musicians, football players, coaches, and captains of industry, including former President Jimmy Carter (twice) and Dr. Wayne Clough. The collection consists of the Living History program’s records of these interviews.
In addition to the collection, the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Council (GHRAC) voted to present Marilyn Somers with the 2021 Award for Excellence in Lifetime Achievement for founding and dedicating 26 years to the Georgia Tech Living History Program. The award was presented to Somers during a ceremony held on October 26, 2021.
There are few people who have done more to preserve Georgia Tech’s rich history than Marilyn Somers, who retired Dec. 31, 2020 as director of the Living History Program, which she built from the ground up in 1994.
Since creating the Living History Program, which serves to preserve and catalogue the stories of Georgia Tech alumni and friends, Somers has conducted 1,192 video interviews, speaking with hall-of-famers to WWII heroes and every “helluva engineer” in between (She even sat down with George P. Burdell for her 1,000th interview). She has produced more than 200 documentaries for Tech and made more than 700 public presentations on Tech’s history. In recognition of her many contributions to the Institute and the Yellow Jacket community, Somers was named an honorary alumna by the Georgia Tech Alumni Association in 2008.
It would be difficult to overestimate the value of her Living History interviews to the Institute, but for families of alumni, these recordings have become priceless treasures.
“Being able to see my grandfather [Randolph Whitfield, ME 32, MS ME 34] and hear his voice is a most special treat, of inestimable value to my family, and I hope to Georgia Tech as well. Marilyn’s pioneering work and perseverance over the years to document these memories has been a superhuman effort,” says Randy McDow, IE 95, MS PP 03.
In these video interviews are the many threads of Tech’s history that make up the Institute’s past and present and shape its future.
“Without Marilyn’s dedication to Tech and her commitment to the Living History Program, much of Georgia Tech’s history would have been lost forever,” said John Carter during an introduction for Somers’ Homecoming traditions presentation this past fall. Carter, who served as executive director of the Alumni Association from 1985 to 1999, hired Somers to serve as the director of communications and public relations in 1989.
“After I was there for awhile, I told him about the Living History idea and he laughed at first, but then came around to it. The rest is history,” says Somers.
In addition to her contributions to preserving Tech’s history, Somers is admired for her tremendous efforts to stay in touch with each person who she’s interviewed or met through the program. Every year, she sends close to 900 birthday and holiday cards and makes countless phone calls to alumni and friends of Georgia Tech. This past year, she had custom chocolates with Georgia Tech details sent to the home of an alumnus who recently turned 100.
As the de facto historian of Georgia Tech, she is the person whom alumni, family members, and faculty members call to seek information about everything “Georgia Tech.” And she is able to answer many of these questions from memory.
“We have this great collection of history because of her, but she’s able to recall facts better than anyone. There’s no replicating that,” says Scott Dinerman, STC 03, who joined the Living History Program in 2005 as a video producer and editor.
Somers’ passion for cataloguing Tech’s history also made her the collector of rare Tech memorabilia that would have been lost to time if not for her intervention.
She has saved many of these artifacts from dusty closets and used them to teach future generations of Yellow Jackets, alumni, and faculty about Tech’s History and traditions. Among the objects families have shared with her include old Rat Caps, T-books, and letter jackets from Tech’s earliest days.
“We accomplished a great deal in the program, but I’m most proud of the relationships that we made and the opportunity to show people our values as an institution,” Somers says.
Each year, Somers taught and led a group of interns who helped transcribe interviews and collect information for Living History projects. Many remember afternoons spent in the Alumni House’s basement archiving interviews and paging through rare editions of Tech’s yearbooks (wearing white gloves to preserve the pages). Through Somers’ guidance, they developed a deep appreciation for history.
“I found hours to peruse old Blueprints, T-Books, The Yellow Jacket, and books on history of football legends or the tough early years on North Avenue. Learning all this solidified the loyalty I carry today as a proud Georgia Tech alumnus,” says Jason Kuykendall, ID 11, who was an intern in 2009 and 2010.
“Marilyn Somers herself will be numbered among the legendary Tech people for all she has given to the Institute and to countless thankful Jackets like me,” Kuykendall says.
Somers produced a newsletter each year for her former interns. As the list of student interns-turned-alumni has grown into the hundreds, these Jackets rely on the annual newsletter to keep in touch with one another and with Somers.
“One of my greatest joys has been working with so many wonderful students,” Somers says.
When the Alumni Association announced her retirement in the fall, these interns and many others from across the Georgia Tech community sent in letters filled with their appreciation for Somers and her many gifts to Tech. Below are snippets from a sample of these letters.
Appreciation from the Georgia Tech Community
“The Living History Program will never be the same without Marilyn. We started with a large camcorder and a cassette tape recorder. And a desktop computer at a little desk in a small room at the bottom floor of the Alumni House.
I remember the first compilation video we did was for the World War II graduating years, which was just fascinating to me. I remember being terrified because I had to interview Cherry Emerson, Jr., myself since Marilyn had a conflict after the interview was scheduled. I remember thinking to myself that I should just do what Marilyn does and things will be all right.
It is impressive to see all of the many interns whose lives have been touched by working in the Living History Program with Marilyn.”
– BARBARA SCHANTZ, HTS 95, INTERN 1994–1995
“No one else could know all about Sideways and George P. Burdell like Marilyn did. And she could relate all this history to any crowd of Tech alumni without any notes.
Marilyn has worked many long hours gathering and preserving this wonderful history before it is lost to the ravages of time. No words from me can adequately describe how important she has been to Georgia Tech.”
– JOHN BURSON, CHE 56, MS MET 63, PHD CHE 64
“This project was something that I will never, ever forget. I was hired to be a part of the inaugural team, and we all had so much to learn about Georgia Tech’s history and how to properly conduct these interviews. Marilyn served as our fearless leader in this daunting task. I had never felt closer to my alma mater than I did sitting with these alumni and hearing their stories from their times at Georgia Tech.”
– KRISTY (HIXSON) McMANUS, MGT 96, INTERN 1994–1995
“Organizations, like people, need to know their history, where they come from and how they got to where they are, if they are to successfully chart a future. [Somers has] been an extraordinary historian of Georgia Tech. [She has] preserved the memories and the knowledge on which we must build.”
– RAFAEL L. BRAS, FORMER GEORGIA TECH PROVOST
“I’ve been out 21 years, and Marilyn still checks in with me. We’ve had lunches together, and she sent gifts when my children were born. She celebrates my professional accomplishments with me. I only worked with her for one year, but I gained a lifetime friend and supporter.”
– MICHELLE L. HOLBROOK HOMIER, HTS 99, INTERN 1998–1999
“Somers] is the original storyteller at Georgia Tech.[Her presentations are always fascinating, filled with little treasures of information and facts that no one else see med to know.”
– JOHN STEIN, VICE PRESIDENT FOR STUDENT LIFE AND BRANDT-FRITZ DEAN OF STUDENTS CHAIR
“At heart, Marilyn is a storyteller. She wasn’t just interviewing an alumnus for their Georgia Tech story, but their life story. As an intern archiving these stories, not only did I see what decisions led that person to Tech or what life was like on campus, but I was able to see how Tech continued to be woven into their life and career afterwards. Whether by skills, values, friendships or traditions, we heard countless stories of the irreplaceable impact of what it meant to be a Yellow Jacket. Marilyn has been so passionate about collecting and preserving Georgia Tech’s history, and she has truly brought life to our Living History. Not just for the family of the loved one’s she’s interviewed, but for all who have been able to share in it through watching the documentaries at events or on social media outlets.”
– KARA SZCZEPANIEC, ID 01, INTERN 1998–2001