He’s attended countless weddings, scared people in darkened houses, and stared down cops. Read what AlumnInsider readers have to say about their adventures for the past 25 years with the cardboard version of Penn State’s beloved head football coach, Stand Up Joe.
Joanna Kennedy Davis Mayers ’05 dances with Joe Our daughter was married Oct. 13, 2007. She handled all of the details herself so she was more than a little concerned when we told her we had invited one surprise guest. She was worried that it was an old boyfriend. … But when the wedding couple entered the ballroom that Saturday night, the special guest was Joe, standing at the disc jockey’s table. He made himself at home on the dance floor most of the evening, dancing with the bride and even in the conga line. We are a true Penn State family—husband, son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law are all graduates—so it was only appropriate that Joe got an invitation too! He moved into the family room of their Bethlehem, Pa., house after the honeymoon and keeps an eye on the dog these days.
Amy Jo Kennedy Davis ’73
Canonsburg, Pa.
Reading the article about Stand-Up Joe immediately made me think of my wedding. One of my best friends from college, Gwen Kaufman Nese ’81, brought a Stand-Up Joe to my wedding reception when I married Mark Higgins in July 1985. The reception was held in the backyard of my parents’ home in Ridgewood, N.J. My husband is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and many of his Gamecock friends were at the reception along with many of my fellow Nittany Lions. After several hours of celebrating, things got a little crazy and some of the Gamecocks decided to try to light Joe on fire! Luckily, he was rescued by a few of the Nittany Lions! Joe survived with just a few burn marks by his shoes.
B. Ann Schnappauf Higgins ’81
Kingston, R.I.
For more than two decades now, Stand Up Joe has served with me as the unofficial assistant city manager of McMinnville, Ore. JoePa has proudly stood in a corner of my office, greeting public, elected officials and other city staff. It’s quite surprising how recognizable JoePa is to folks clear out in Oregon! But he’s also startled quite a few people over the years, who don’t notice him right away. Right now, he has a faux fire department helmet on. During the hoopla surrounding the 1995 Rose Bowl (Penn State played the University of Oregon), Stand Up Joe was “kidnapped” for a time, but was safely returned to my office by humbled Oregon fans. We are Penn State!
Kent Taylor, ’72g
McMinnville, Ore.
My parents, Ernie Larson ’59 and Judy Kirchner Larson ’60 of Latrobe, Pa., had a Stand Up Joe in their house. One dark and stormy night, I arrived home to a vacant house where the electricity was off due to the storm. I wandered into the family room to find a flashlight and lightening struck just as I turned the corner backlighting Joe in front of my parents’ sliding glass door (where he stands proudly, smiling at all the Pitt fans on our street). I screamed and ran, thinking there was an intruder in the house. It took me a full 60 seconds before I realized who the intruder was.
Susan Larson Mealiea ’86
Manassas, Va.
The Beaver Stadium Magazine contains a biography of Joe Paterno that refers to an incident in which a house sitter mistook Stand Up Joe for an intruder and called the police. That happened at our home in Clinton, N.Y., in the fall of 1989. The story got some local publicity and was subsequently picked up by Sports Illustrated, which published a brief account of the event in their issue of Jan. 29, 1990. Five squad cars responded and “established a perimeter” around our house until they found that the “intruder” was only cardboard. We thought it amusing that Joe, a paragon of virtue among college football coaches, might be mistaken for a burglar, especially on a Saturday evening during football season!
Thomas J. Scott ’56, ’58g, ’61g
Clinton, N.Y.
My son, Edward Barna ’05, got married on Aug. 1, 2009. Stand Up Joe attended the wedding reception. He can be seen leading the train dance with Ed and his wife, Jamie. Joe was a big hit, posing for pictures with many guests (some not even Penn State fans!).
Maria Lutz Barna ’74
Freeland, Pa.
In 1985, my then-freshman son asked his 15-year-old sister what she wanted for Christmas. Her answer, “A cute guy from Penn State.” Fun guy that he was (and is), he got her a cardboard cutout of JoePa. On Christmas morning after we were all downstairs by the tree, my son disappeared for a few minutes. After all gifts were opened, my daughter questioned her brother because there was no gift from him. He suggested that she go to her room and a surprise would be waiting. When she opened her bedroom door, there was JoePa. Needless to say, that was not what she had in mind when she asked for a “cute guy from Penn State.”
Roberta Aungst ’66
Cape May, N.J.
L to R, Ben Long ’02, JoePa ’50 Brown, Chris Law ’06 Our JoePa cutout has made not only game day bar trips with us, but he also [starred in] a video tribute that I made, cut together, frame for frame, the same as the JoePa video montage that aired on ABC prior to the Ohio State game in 2008. Ours aired on a limo bus ride from San Diego to Pasadena for the 2008 Rose Bowl. It’s on YouTube. (The JoePa montage is also on YouTube.)
Chris Law ’06
San Diego
When my wife and I lived in Greenville, N.C., we belonged to the Brook Valley Country Club. I was an administrator and professor at East Carolina University. One day during football season, I brought a friend’s Stand Up Joe to the main bar in the club and put it in a dark spot at the side of the bar. During a discussion of collegiate football—including Penn State and JoePa—one of the participants was rather critical of the program and Joe. So I looked toward the Stand Up Joe and said, “Joe did you hear that?” When the critic looked over to the dark area he did a double take and I thought he was going to faint. He almost apologized to the Stand Up Joe before realizing it was not real. The rest of us were on the floor laughing.
John Maiolo ’63g, ’65g
Chocowinity, N.C.
The Stand Up Joe story made me think of my friend, Joe, who was in the Air Force. He had obtained a Stand Up Joe while stationed in the states but wasn’t sure what to do with “Joe” a few years later when he was headed for Okinawa, Japan. Since Joe is as die-hard a Penn State fan as I am, there was no way he was leaving Stand Up Joe behind. I could only picture the image of JoePa with him on the many flights from Pittsburgh to Okinawa. The coach in the khaki slacks was under my friend’s arm as he walked through the Tokyo airport, as many confused Japanese citizens stared, unsure as to who the guy was with the thick glasses and a football in his hand. Stand Up Joe made the trip back to the states when my friend’s Okinawa hitch was up. Stand Up Joe lived through stops at Andrews AFB in Washington, D.C., Ramstein in Germany and Eglin AFB in Pensacola, Fla. By the time my friend retired after 20 years, the southern humidity had taken its toll on Stand Up Joe, and he was no longer fit to travel. Joe made the difficult decision to leave the withered coach behind when he and his family returned to western Pennsylvania. I have always admired Joe’s loyalty to this Stand Up Joe, and the many travels they shared together.
Kip Richeal ’87
Beaver Falls, Pa.
At AlumnInsider, we always enjoy hearing from our readers, whether it’s about Stand Up Joe or other stories. E-mail us at asf1@psu.edu.
