USU’S SUMMER CITIZENS- RICHARD AND DONNA BORDEN
A happenstance meeting of two physical therapists and a love for education was the perfect recipe for a young Richard and Donna Borden to begin their lives together.
The two met while Donna was in graduate school in Kentucky, working as a traveling physical therapist. Meanwhile, Richard was working on his master’s degree in anatomy.
After the couple graduated, they moved to Charleston, South Carolina, where they raised their two daughters, and Richard started a physical therapy program from scratch at the Medical University of South Carolina. Later, the Bordens decided to move to Flagstaff, Arizona.
While in Flagstaff, Richard ran a second start-up physical therapy program and became the Dean of the College of Health Professions at Northern Arizona University, where he practiced nursing, speech, recreational education, physical education and physical therapy. Donna also had her own private physical therapy practice.
The couple eventually moved to a retirement community in Sun City, Arizona, to retire after spending 25 years in Flagstaff.
One summer in the Phoenix area was enough for them to decide they needed to go back to the mountains, and with some convincing from a few of their friends involved in the Utah State University Summer Citizens program, the couple came to visit Logan.
The Bordens signed up for the Summer Citizens program the following summer, and have been coming since 2005.
But their story doesn’t stop there. They loved their experiences in Logan so much, they bought a house in Logan in 2012.
“We decided we liked it so much, and it’s a good investment,” Donna Borden said. “Our kids love it up here. They call it their mountain house and our grandkids come and ski in the winter, so we occasionally come up to stay for a week or two when snow is on the ground.”
They make their home in Logan from May to October, and stay until the leaves turn colors in the fall so their friends can see the changing of the seasons.
But when the first snowflake hits the ground, the Bordens pack up and head back to sunshine and desert warmth, leaving Logan behind until the summer months come again.
Richard spends his summer days active with the USU football team as a strength and conditioning coach and is an Olympic weightlifting coach by hobby.
He is also an adjunct faculty member who volunteers unpaid time to train coaches, grad students and olympic strength coaches in weightlifting.
Meanwhile, Donna teaches two classes on campus and is also taking a photography class.
“We just find that being in a university environment is very important to us, and we missed that in Arizona because we’re kind of in a senior community,” Donna said. “Getting back into the university environment is really exciting. It’s part of our life forever.”
Richard describes the environment of Logan as one with a unique “town and gown” relationship.
“The town and gown relationship that exists here is one that can’t be found anywhere else,” Richard said. “Other communities in Arizona have tried to incorporate something like this and it doesn’t work or the town and university don’t work well together, but here, they work really well together.”
The Bordens have found the weather, the environment and the relationships they have built here in Logan to be just a few of the things they enjoy the most.
“The mountains and the environment are just things I don’t think you can beat here. It’s just such a wonderful little nest here in the middle of the mountains,” Donna said.
Donna has found other avenues of involvement through the Utah Festival Opera. She helps coordinate a small cafe that provides snacks at intermission and after the shows for theatergoers.
“I’m kind of a volunteer kind of person, so getting involved in the community is good for me because I meet a lot of people,” Donna said.
For the past 43 years, the Summer Citizens program has been catering to senior adults over the age of 55 at USU, according to Linda D’Addabbo, the director of the Summer Citizens program at USU.
There are many community sponsors, including the Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theater, the Lyric Repertory Theater, Cache Valley Hospital, Logan Regional Hospital, Elements Restaurant, Lee’s Marketplace, USU Dining Services and the Logan Natural Grocers, among many others.
The Bordens have found enjoyment in the Lyric shows and entertainment provided on campus, as well as the golf course.
“There’s just so much culture, music, shows and things to do. That really adds to the value of coming up here, is that I’m never bored,” Donna said.
The Bordens enjoy the unique opportunities that the summer citizens program provides, including educational, cultural and social opportunities.
As they go back to their Arizona home, they always take back “lots of great memories and share in “lifelong friendships” from the five short months they are in Logan each year.
“It’s been fulfilling. It’s been educational, and all the social opportunities add to a great environment,” Donna said.
—kortni.marie.wells@aggiemail.usu.edu
@kortniwells