Miami has become a tradition for Maryland family
Four children at Miami over 18 years made for plenty of trips to Oxford for Mary Beth and Andrew Greene
Miami has become a tradition for Maryland family
When Morley Greene, the oldest of Mary Beth and Andrew’s four children, decided to attend Miami in 2005, the parents sat down with their youngest, 5-year-old Peter.
Morley, they explained, was still going to live with them sometimes, but he would also be living in Oxford, Ohio – eight hours and 500 miles away from their home in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
A few trips and a few football games later, Peter came around to the idea of his big brother being so far away. So did the Greenes’ daughters, Mary Jane and Kathleen.
Morley ’09 was the first. He was not the last.
Eighteen years later, the Greenes are set to watch Peter graduate on May 13, the fourth Greene to come through Miami since Morley started the tradition by earning his Bachelor of Science degree. He now lives in Virginia with his wife Lindsay and three children where he works for Lockheed Martin.
How did the Greenes find Miami? A few classmates at Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C., spread the word. A year older than Morley, they had just finished their first year at Miami and praised the university. The positivity worked. Morley decided to visit, eventually telling his parents, “I just want to do it. Let’s do Miami.”
“The rest of the crew just followed him,” Mary Beth said. “Everyone was early decision. They all kind of grew up out there.”
Mary Jane ’15, the second oldest, had her heart set on Miami. “What’s not to love?” she told Mary Beth and Andrew. When they urged her to look at other schools, she quickly replied, “Why would I?”
Mary Jane earned her degree in Communication and now lives in Austin with her husband Henry working for BENlabs, an advertising agency company.
Kathleen ’18 was Greene No. 3 at Miami. She became so comfortable with the campus and area so quickly that, instead of traveling home to Maryland for fall break her first year, she stayed in Cincinnati.
“You were surrounded by people who were just good people,” she said. “If you ever needed something, you’d be able to find help or someone would be there for you.”
Kathleen now works as a kindergarten teacher after graduating with a degree in Education. She did her student teaching at Oyler in Cincinnati as well as Marshall Elementary School in Oxford.
Working at Oyler and Marshall was a joy for Kathleen, even if she and her classmates had to wake up at 5 a.m. during their semester teaching in Cincinnati.
“It was worth it,” Kathleen said. “We loved every second of it.”
Kathleen’s time at Miami inspired another family member to join the ranks. The Greenes’ cousin, Michael Jones, graduated in 2020.
When Peter, their fourth and youngest, opted for Miami to study Supply Chain and Operations Management, Mary Beth and Andrew were veterans of the process. They had move-in day down pat. They stayed at The Elms Hotel in Oxford as much as possible. They had been to Parents Weekends, hockey games, and football tailgates (where a 10-year-old Kathleen would do cartwheels in the parking lot). They found plenty of places to feel at home in Oxford, such as Bodega and Steinkeller restaurants.
And, they learned one valuable lesson very early on that all the Greene children benefited from: the Oxford Walmart is a goldmine. “Anything you forget, you will be able to get there,” Kathleen said.
During move-in, Andrew wandered the halls after his work was done to meet other parents and say hello. After that, it was lunch uptown, usually at Bodega.
That is where parents and children typically parted ways.
“We would get in our car to leave and see them walking down the street with new friends,” Mary Beth said. “Of course, we were crying, but it was such a good feeling. You felt so happy, so grateful. I don’t know how to even explain it.
“It was just such a happy place for them all to be.”
As they prepare for graduation No. 4, the Greenes have plenty of good times at Miami to reflect on. Mary Beth and Andrew also now have three grandchildren, with hopes of the family’s next generation also eventually finding their way to Oxford.
“It is bittersweet,” Mary Beth said. “We’ve loved it out there so much. Now what are we going to do with the next 18?”
