Pie-ified at the Party

Fordham’s popular Dagger John Day celebration on June 3 ended on a very sweet note—blueberry crumb pie sweet, that is.

A couple of dozen Fordham employees—let’s anoint them the “Good Sports Club”—competed in a pie-eating contest that was a raucous hands-behind-the-back, face-full-in-sickeningly-sweet-filling event. While some gave up long before making a dent in their dessert, others went the full distance, chowing down to the bottom of the aluminum pan.

The winner (pictured above and below) was Richard B. Gussenhoven, LTC, professor of military science, who teaches in Fordham’s ROTC program. It was clear that military training helped Gussenhoven, a veteran of both the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, go the distance.

“It was mind over matter, I just kept eating,” he said.

Others took a more measured approach, especially as co-workers and loved ones looked on.

“I wanted to make everybody proud, but more than that I didn’t want to barf on the table,” said Patrick Verel, assistant editor at INSIDE FORDHAM who represented the Office of Marketing and Communications in the event.

More pie, anyone? (Photos by Bruce Gilbert)