by Luke Loranger|
A year has passed since the birth of Gregory Wode, and he has found a welcoming home in Corrado Hall. Gregory was born Jan. 4, 2015 -- and Mike Wode, Corrado’s hall director and Jessica Wode, an office manager in Residence Life adopted him soon after.
Gregory is a welcome distraction for often stressed-out students, many of whom have welcomed the presence of Gregory into their lives, often while hanging out in the common spaces in Corrado.
“When we are tired we will bring (Gregory) into the lobby and someone will want to play with him, bounce him around,” Jessica said.
This sentiment was echoed by the students who live in Corrado, such as sophomore Brody White.
“There will be baby breaks during homework,” White said. “Gregory loves the elevator and so there will be a bunch of people in the third floor lobby doing homework and we will play with the baby for 20 minutes.”
The Wodes’ adjustment into the small apartment has also worked out well. They have a play-pen that they put into halves to block off the living room as a play area. The Wodes will move into a new apartment next year, when the new dorm is finished, and hope to adopt another child in the future. They also hope to move the child in a toddler bed in their room with the larger apartment.
Still, being a hall director with a child is not without challenges.
“As a hall director you don't really have your own yard (and) I'm always on display,” Mike said. “If (Gregory) is having a tantrum, I don't want him to be a disruption to the students’ lives.”
Mike thinks the experience of being a hall director with a child has benefited his tenure at Corrado.
“It makes me more approachable. It disarms me as an authority figure, and makes me more human,” Mike said. He believes the many roles he serves as a father and husband allow him to show what a healthy family looks like.
“Some people have made comments that cuddling Gregory is good stress relief,” Jessica said. “They just like seeing his smiling face, we have really only heard positive things about having him in the hall.”
Luke Loranger is a reporter for the Beacon and can be reached on Twitter @loranger18 or loranger18@up.edu.
