Duke Students Reward Beloved Library Security Guard With A Pair Of Basketball Tickets

El Taco9 years ago

Marty Slutsky has worked at Duke’s school library for 12 years now and he’s clearly had quite the impact on students.

Slutsky, a Vietnam War veteran, works the night shift as a security guard at the library and says he usually doesn’t have the money to get tickets to watch his Blue Devils play basketball (tickets to watch rival UNC inside of Cameron Indoor Stadium are going for more than $900 on StubHub right now).

After talking with Slutsky one late night, sophomores Kayla Schulz and Lauren Perry-Carrera learned of his dream of going to a Blue Devils basketball game.

From Duke University:

This particular night, Schulz and Perry-Carrera wound up having a long conversation with Marty, who told them he served in the Vietnam War and was awarded a Bronze Medal and Purple Heart, and how, as a fire inspector, he responded to Ground Zero during the 9/11 terrorist attack in New York City.

…

Hours later, the pair of students set in motion a fundraising effort to accomplish just that. Schulz created a page on GoFundMe.com, a popular crowdfunding site, and Perry-Carrera shared the news on a Facebook page, alerting other students. Right away, donations started coming in from students who had also met Marty, who had forged relationships with many who spend late nights at Perkins.

‘He’s such a friendly guy,’ Schulz said. ‘I think almost every student who’s spent time in Perkins has waved to him or at least recognize him from being around.’

The two students set up the GoFundMe page with the hopes of raising $430 for a pair of tickets for Slutsky. They received nearly double the amount — $803. Slutsky was able to go to the game, sit mid-court and watch the Blue Devils flex on the Florida State Seminoles 80-65.

A round of applause for everyone involved here. More students should do this. People like Slutsky are the unsung heroes of college campuses. Seriously, take some time out of your day and look at the hard working people keeping campus safe and clean. Glad you got to see your team in action, Slutsky, and thank you for your service..

[via Duke University]

Image via YouTube