September 30, 2003

Festive lights and black tie helped mark the dedication Saturday, Sept. 27, of Saint Anselm College's newly opened Thomas F. Sullivan Arena.

The dedication was held before a formally dressed audience of more than 400 invited guests, who after the ceremony moved to Davison Hall for the annual President's Society Dinner.

The arena, which will serve as home ice for the Saint Anselm men's hockey team and the new women's hockey program, is named in memory of Sullivan, the father of Miriam Smith. She and her husband Robert are the principal benefactors of the $7.9 million facility. The Gilford, N.H., couple gave the college an unrestricted $5 million gift that helped fund the arena construction.

"I am profoundly grateful to the Smith family for their faith in Saint Anselm College and for choosing to honor such a beloved family member," said college President Fr. Jonathan DeFelice, O.S.B., in remarks during the dedication. "After more than three decades of Saint Anselm hockey, off-site practices and games, this facility has launched us into a new era."

Trustee and alumnus Robert Smith Jr. '86, of Bedford, and his wife Elizabeth, also chose to honor his parents that evening with a generous act of their own. The VIP box at center ice is now named the Robert F. and Miriam Smith President's Box at Sullivan Arena.

The teams themselves thanked the couple by making them "honorary captains" for the 2003-2004 season.

The Saint Anselm men's team is expected to play its first game on home ice Friday, Dec. 5, versus Tufts University. The women's team will start as a club team and play a varsity schedule next season.

"There are probably a great many people in this room tonight who never could imagine that we would be standing in such a beautiful building and celebrating 'home ice advantage,' " said Robert Weiler, chairman of the board of trustees and alumnus from the class of 1973.

The rink has been open since early September, when it began hosting youth hockey programs and captains practices. Season practice for the college teams starts this month.