There’s more fun in the life of Hopkins students— especially since the January opening of the three-story, 63,000-square-foot Ralph S. O’Connor Recreation Center. The $14.3 million facility was named in honor of the 1951 Johns Hopkins graduate, trustee emeritus, Houston businessman, philanthropist, and civic leader who has made generous gifts toward its construction. “The new recreation center provides superb space for intramural and informal competitions and physical fitness activities,” notes O’Connor, who played varsity basketball and football at Hopkins.

With the building’s open design—featuring high ceilings and glass walls—there is little to obstruct the view of its extensive facilities. For example, the three-lane indoor jogging track gives runners an eagle-eye view of those playing on the courts below or scaling the 30-foot climbing wall. The new facility connects with the Newton H. White Athletic Center. The O’Connor Center is entirely donor-funded. Among the generous gifts, a bequest from the late Larry Goldfarb of Baltimore made possible the naming of the facility’s gym for Goldfarb’s longtime friend, Robert H. Scott ’52, who devoted 50 years to Hopkins as student, lacrosse coach and athletic director (he retired in 1995). The 2,500-square-foot fitness center, a gift from the PepsiCo Foundation, is extremely popular, with its treadmills, cross-trainers, stationary bikes, stair machines, and rowing machines.

Thanks to the generosity of donors, the Hopkins tradition of participation in intramural athletics, sports clubs, and informal recreation will continue on in the O’Connor Center. Alumni memberships are available for $240 per year. For more information, visit the web site at: www.jhu.edu/~recsport/