Small-World Stories, Big Knox Connections
While Knox College may be small in size, the connections built among its alumni run deep and proud. The College has a way of showing up when and where you least expect, but there always seems to be that fellow grad around the corner, whether at a conference, a community event, or even a vacation.
Knox connections can be made anywhere at any time or any place, and we wanted to hear your stories on your made connections. Where were you? How did you meet? What were you doing? Those connections and stories may seem random, but they are a part of Knox College’s long goal of making a large world feel smaller, whether it is through education or the connections and memories developed.
We asked Knox alumni to share their stories of random Knox connections between those who know about the South Lawn, Old Main, Flunk Day, and many more of the College’s storied traditions.
Christine Purtell Deblock ’91
We had a visiting minister at our church one Sunday, and it turned out he was a Knox alum (it was mentioned in his introduction). The next year when he came back, I knew about it ahead of time and wore my Knox sweatshirt. He noticed it and paused in the middle of his remarks to point it out.
Summer Storm Kingery ’01
When I started vet school nearly a decade after graduating college, we went around the 80 person class and said who we were, area of interest, and where we graduated from. When I said Knox College, there was a cheer. It was the only cheer all day—4 Knox alums taught at the university vet college.
Janet Mensen Reynolds ’89
I’m currently in a semi-professional choir in Chicago that has five Knox grads in it. The choir is only 32 people so that is way cool!
Meryl Leventon ’08
Sat next to a Knox grad in a tiny restaurant in Florence Italy where we chatted over a Florentine steak. He graduated about 35 years before me but was a really cool moment!
Lindsay Hansen Brown ’99
Charging my car at the CA/OR border, a couple waiting for the charger told me they went to Knox in the 80s. Also, during lockdown, a colleague at my library recognized my Seymour Library Zoom background and her mom is an alum from the 70s! I guess there are more alumni in California, and specifically Los Angeles, than I thought!
Barbara McCauley Baumeister ’72
Met a current student while staying at the same resort in Belize!
Sarah Lammie ’05
People with Knox bumper stickers or window decals almost always wave to each other in traffic. I've had a few random stoplight conversations with fellow alums, and it always brightens up my day!
Shannon McClure Shirvan ’87
First job after grad school was at Towson University in Maryland and the president was a Knox grad, Hoke Smith. Fast forward to last year, I start a position at a local high school and the teacher I’m long term subbing for has a Knox poster up.
Morgan Berg ’98
When I was studying in Zimbabwe I heard a couple talking in American accents so my ears perked up. Then I heard them mention Galesburg, IL. I wondered who else in Zimbabwe had heard of Galesburg, IL, lol! I went over and introduced myself. Turns out they were Knox College alums from the early 80s!!
But here's where things get especially meaningful: later in that trip I got very sick with a high fever. And, while I was sick, I lost my passport. Of the two Knox alumni, one was a doctor and the other worked for the US Embassy! The doctor made sure I got good care and the her husband got me a replacement passport
Richard Chung ’95
My favorite was I was at a McDonald’s rest stop outside Chicago, talking about the upcoming semester (‘92), when the ladies in front of me turned to say…”we went to Knox. We graduated in 1946.” So matter of factly that I was taken a back and we did an impromptu Pumphandle.
Mia Jiganti ’89
I was at an American Bar Association meeting in Seattle. Walked out of the hotel and saw John Podesta. He was on the phone. Husband and I crossed the street. Told my husband I had to go back and introduce myself because, of course, Knox. Went back and he was off the phone so I introduced myself by saying, "I went to Knox too!" Yes, that did proceed my name. He was very nice.
Liz Fiedorow Sjaastad ’89
After Knox and post-graduate school, I started my first real job in downtown Chicago. One day, next to my nameplate at my cubicle, someone had placed purple and yellow decorations. It was a day or so later when Anne Taylor, whom I did not know but was a Knox grad, lawyer, and wife of soon-to-be president Roger Taylor, stopped by to see if I'd noticed the colors. She was tickled to let me know they were Knox colors and that we were both graduates. It was fun having that connection when I was new to working in the big city.
Wendy MacArtney Feer ’79
A friend fixed me up on a blind date in NYC. He turned out to be a Knox alum from six years before me. None of us knew beforehand.
Share your small world Knox story by emailing communications@knox.edu
Published on August 19, 2026
– Knox College Office of Communications