Barb '75 and Buzzy '74 Ernst
In the last 30 years, if you were a Springfield College student, faculty, coach, or staff member, it would be hard not to know who Buzzy ‘74, G’79, and Barb ‘75 Ernst were.
They have been regulars at basketball games (the couple have been friends with Coach Brock since all three were undergraduate students), football games, gymnastic meets, volleyball games, and other athletic events.
They answer your phone calls during Giving Day and Day of Recruitment.
If you are faculty emeriti, they were probably at your retirement party. If you are a student, Barb was probably your club’s financial advisor. There is even a good chance you ate dinner at their home.
“I think we fed more students than Cheney,” Buzzy joked. “When Barb invites you, you have a requirement to come.”
There are countless ways that Barb and Buzzy offer a helping hand to the Springfield College community. They do it out of a sense of altruism, but also to pay forward the generosity that was once extended to them.
After living and working in New Hampshire for two years, Buzzy and Barb moved back to Western Massachusetts when Barb got a teaching job in Wilbraham. Buzzy didn’t have a job lined up so he made a trip to Springfield College’s Career Center and serendipitously ran into Bob Palmer, director of admissions at the time.
When asked what he was doing, Buzzy told him he was looking for help with employment. Palmer offered him something better.
“He said ‘You can have a job with me as a graduate assistant, now go get yourself accepted in grad school! And oh by the way, classes begin on Monday.”
Years later, after graduate school led Buzzy to a long career at Milton Bradley, it was Barb who would reach out to Palmer for job help. After 14 years in the Wilbraham school system, she was looking for a career change and saw a position in Student Activities at Springfield College.
“I called Bob and told him I was applying and asked him to put in a good word for me,” she said. “They offered me the job.”
In her new position, Barb was able to offer mentorship, support, and, yes, food, to countless students.
“I wanted to give back to the students. I wanted to be there, be involved, kind of be their mom away from home,” she said.
They also give back monetarily, annually supporting Springfield College.
“We want students to be able to experience the whole megillah and not be concerned with finances. There’s people who give more than we do, but I'm not sure anybody does it with as much passion as Buzzy and Barb,” Buzzy said.
