(Dr. Victor Vari, Yours Truely & Michael E. Engh, President at SCU)
Dr. Victor Vari, the longest serving professor at the University of Santa Clara, was recently honored with the dedication of the Victor B. & Julia Botto Vari Hall. Professor Vari has been teaching Italian language for 68 years, and this year will be the 61st at Santa Clara for the vivacious nonagenarian. Santa Clara University has proclaimed that “he is an undisputed jewel in the crown of Santa Clara University.” He is also a real monument of Italian culture here in the Bay Area.
According to the Santa Clara University Press:
Capping a lifetime of generosity to Santa Clara University, the University’s longest-serving professor and his wife have bequeathed an estimated $8 million of their estate to SCU to fund an endowment for the arts and humanities, to name the arts and sciences building, and to support other special projects.
The generous gift will be the legacy of Dr. Victor B. Vari, who recently retired after teaching Italian and other languages and literature to SCU students since 1946, and his wife Julia Botto Vari. The proceeds — which derive from their life savings as well as inheritances received over their lifetimes — will be used to fund the Dr. Victor B. and Julia Botto Vari Endowment for the Arts and Humanities, including the Vari Italian Studies Initiative, and for the Victor B. and Julia Botto Vari Hall.
“Santa Clara is very important to me,” said Julia. “I married a man whose life was Santa Clara. We loved what we were doing; we loved the students—they were the children we never had. These relationships which extend over these many years continue to give us great pleasure to this day.”
(A heartfelt dedication ceremony for a pillar of the USC community)
Dr. Vari was born in San Francisco and educated in Italy. He got his start as a teacher at the age of 17, when he taught elementary-age children at an after-school program at Dopo Scuola, a school for the sons of Italian immigrants.
When the Italian schools were closed during the war, he became a radio announcer in Berkeley. Every night from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., he translated news into Italian and played Italian opera. This year, he will teach elementary Italian courses for each quarter, as well as a Romantic Period (19th century) Italian Literature course in the spring quarter. Professor Vari is also a Knight Commander of the historic Knights of Malta, a Catholic group with origins in the 12th century.
As we’ve discussed in the past months, Italian language instruction is undergoing some tough times in our community. Still, through the dedicated efforts of Dr. Vari and other Italian instructors, la bella lingua is being kept alive in the Bay Area. With the support of the whole Italian community, we can elevate Italian language instruction back to its place as a foundational romance language offered widely in the Bay Area. Please consider learning more about this campaign and helping in any way you can. Real action is needed today. For more information click here.