Senior goodbye: Pat Maguire

Working for the Review for the past two years as a sports editor and a managing sports editor has provided me with endless opportunities. I have covered Division I football games from luxurious press boxes, interviewed professional athletes and gained access to sporting events that would have made the 10-year-old me explode with envy.              

But, of everything I have done for the Review, this is the best thing I've gotten the opportunity to do. Not every college senior gets to stand at the brink of graduation and write whatever he wants for everyone to see.              

I decided to use the opportunity to give something of an acceptance speech. I haven't won a Pulitzer or an Oscar and I'm not famous. The closest I've come to having an agent is when I named my dog Jerry Maguire and I haven't signed any multi-million dollar deals yet (notice I said "yet"). But, when I graduate on May 29 and listen to some lady nobody's ever heard of give a commencement speech, I'll be exactly where I want to be in my life, and I didn't do it alone.              

In fact, I had an enormous supporting cast and support network.  I would not be nearly as successful or prepared to enter the real world without them. So, I would like to thank them all.              

First and foremost, I'd like to thank the Review staff. It's weird how a job I took on as a sophomore because I thought it would give me good clips and act as a good line on my resume' turned into a lifestyle and a family atmosphere to me.

I always felt at home when I walked into the Review office on Sundays and Mondays and it wasn't long before work wasn't work. It was hanging out with my friends and doing what I love to do. In particular, the Review Staffers who took me under their wing cannot be thanked enough. Seif Hussein, who was a managing sports editor last year and worked over me when I was a desk editor taught me everything I needed to know about being a sports reporter and editor in Delaware and became a good friend as well. Laura Dattaro and Brian Anderson, who hired me and always had confidence in my work cannot go without mentioning. Neither can Josh Shannon, this year's and next year's editor and chief, and Maddie Thomas, this year's executive editor. And, my partner for the past year, Matt Waters, needs to be thanked. He always made my job easier and more entertaining and I couldn't have asked for a better co-managing sports editor.

I would also like to thank every professor who has helped me succeed in the past four years, particularly those who helped fuel my passion for journalism, reporting and story-telling. Dawn Fallik and Bill Fleischman should be thanked for never letting a mistake go unnoticed, an opportunity missed or a needed kick in the pants un-kicked. I would not be the journalist I consider myself today without their incredible expertise and guidance.

Additionally, I cannot go without thanking the journalists I look up to, aspire to be and got the opportunity to work under at some point in my college career. Jane Lopes, the editor of the Middleboro Gazette cannot be thanked enough, nor can Mark Nardone, the editor of Delaware Today. And, without Gary Miles, a deputy sports editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer, I would not have been provided with the endless opportunities put before me on a daily basis this past year.

When mentioning a support network it's hard to mention every individual, but I need to thank every family friend who has acted like family throughout the years. I know I have unthinkable amounts of people who have me on their mind often. They ask my parents about me and make a point to ask how I'm doing when I get to see them. I know that they will always do whatever they can to help me, and they are always pulling for me.

And, I have to thank my extended family. I have a dozens of aunts, uncles and cousins who have played an integral role in my life. I know I can lean on all of them for any kind of support I need and their warmth and kindness throughout the years has helped me become the person I am today. In particular, I would like to thank my incredible grandmother, whom I admire deeply.

I can't go without thanking my friends in Lakeville and Freetown Mass. where I grew up. The fun times never seem to end and I know that while the crazy parties and juvenile behavior may dwindle as we get older, my hometown friends will always be there whenever I need them.

And, of course, my Sigma Phi Epsilon brothers here in Delaware need thanking. From guys who were seniors when I was a freshman to guys who are freshmen now that I'm a senior, they have all helped shape my college life. It is impossible to put into words what my fraternity has meant to me throughout college, and more importantly – what the brothers in my fraternity have meant to me. But, those involved know what it means and words are not necessary.

The guys and girls of Dickinson A1, Continental Court 113 and 114, 46 Choate St. and 87/89 S Chapel need a special thanking. From day one (and I literally mean day one) I have never been short of a best friend. In fact, I always had six or seven. The term "support network" doesn't do this group justice when speaking of my college years and I know that the bus doesn't stop here.

We have a plan to continue living together long after college when we buy a gigantic house with one common living area and separate wings to accommodate our separate families. Whether that works out or not is up in the air, but I do know that Delaware has provided me with lifelong friends – even if we don't live in an enormous house together for years to come.