The story of how Terri and Mark Abbott met feels almost like a classic college romance, full of serendipity and youthful charm. It was the spring of 1978, and Terri lived in Lottie Jane Hall, one of the university’s women’s dorms, while Mark was across the way at John Mabee Hall, the men’s dorm. Neither of them could have predicted where it would lead. Mark, a junior in engineering, had joined the Lottie Jane Hall softball team as an assistant coach, hoping to meet more women. It was there that he met Terri, a fellow junior who immediately took notice of him.
“It was love at first sight for me,” Terri recalls. “I told my roommate, ‘That’s the guy you take home to meet your mother.’ She just rolled her eyes, but I knew.” It wasn’t until the following fall, however, that the two officially started dating after a chance meeting at an event.
In less than two years, after graduating in May of 1979, they married in 1980.
Since then, they’ve built a life together, raising two children and supporting each other through career changes and life’s milestones. Their daughter, Lauren, is a UTulsa alum and an attorney in St. Louis, while their son, Alan, chose to attend the University of Arkansas and now lives in California. But even with their children grown, Terri and Mark’s connection to UTulsa remains a significant part of their lives.
“We’ve always been big supporters of the university,” Terri says. “Mark’s on a couple of boards there, and I used to be on the alumni board. We attend games, go to events, and we’ve kept in touch with so many friends from our time there. Even though we live in Bartlesville, just 40 minutes north of Tulsa, we still feel so connected to TU.”
“The beauty of a university like Tulsa,” Terri explains, “is its close-knit community. “It’s a small school, so you can stay actively involved. It’s not like being at a big school where you can get lost in the shuffle. It’s easy to stay a part of the university, and that’s something we both cherish.”
While their marriage and alumni involvement have certainly been a highlight of their post-college years, Terri is also quick to share that there’s more to her time at UTulsa than just meeting Mark. She mentions the funny traditions and quirky stories that come with campus life. One of her favorites? The lighthearted rivalry between Lottie Jane Hall and John Mabee Hall—where, as college students often do, they gave the dorms nicknames: “Lottie” and “The John,” a playful reference to the “throne” of John Mabee Hall, which is the source of many amusing stories.
And when she hears the tale of the dorms’ original benefactors, Lottie and John Mabee, she feels even more connected to the university’s history. The Mabee’s shared love story and their philanthropy built a legacy that continues today, and the residence halls that bear their names still house generations of UTulsa students.
It’s a story that goes beyond the years spent on campus, one that continues to grow and evolve with each passing year. And in the case of Terri and Mark, it’s a story that’s lasted a lifetime.
Do you have lasting memories of “The John” or “Lottie Jane” halls? Send us an email at news@utulsa.edu.
Click here to learn how the Mabee Foundation is leading the way in preserving Lottie Jane for future generations of the Golden Hurricane.