A pair of tie-dye sneakers tuck themselves under a desk chair in an office in Rowland Hall, but come spring, these psychedelic shoes will not be the only thing missing in the communication/journalism department.

Loretta Sobrito, department secretary for the communication/journalism department since 2002, will be retiring at the end of the fall semester after 25 years of working at Shippensburg University.

Before becoming the department secretary, Sobrito worked in the Center for Juvenile Justice Training and Research Department, which is housed in Horton Hall, where she kept records and statistics. Then she worked in the graduate assistant admission office in Old Main prior to becoming the departmental secretary for the communication/journalism department.

“Honestly, when I think of the comm/journ department I think of Loretta. She’s really the glue that holds everything together,” said junior Ashley Grecco, an office aide for Sobrito.

Junior Courtney Kokonos, also an office aide for Sobrito, said that Sobrito does so much for the communication journalism department — from the small details of making coffee to helping organize events and sending newsletters and emails to students.

“She’s always running around doing more than she has to [do] to help,” Kokonos said.

For every person who entered Sobrito’s office with a question or a problem, Sobrito responded with a solution and a smile that stretched to her brown-green eyes just behind a pair of glasses.

The interaction with students is what Sobrito loves most about her job and is what she will miss most, she said. Sobrito helps students override classes, work through scheduling and answer any questions about the communication/journalism department.

“When they come in upset or looking distraught, I like when they’re able to leave and I know that they’re feeling much better and the world is not over,” Sobrito said.

Sobrito takes the time to talk with students and tries to direct them in their school program and career path, said Carrie Sipes, a communication/journalism professor at SU.

“Every time I see her interacting with students it’s always positive. It seems like she has a lot of energy toward helping students and encouraging them,” Sipes said.

Sobrito not only helps students with the technical part of scheduling, Sipes said, but also acts as an “ambassador” for the communication/journalism department by telling students what their futures might look like as journalists, personal relations people, broadcasters or video producers.

Because the communication/journalism department is a skill-based field, Sobrito said that she gets to see students develop their skills and apply them in a career.

“It’s just really neat to see them go from having a dream to making a dream happen … “That’s one of my favorite questions to ask a new student: what’s your dream job?” Sobrito said.

It is exciting to watch students achieve their goals, Sobrito said. Because all three of her children are now adults, she said her students have now become her children.

For the past two years that Grecco has worked as Sobrito’s office aide, Grecco said that every morning she walks into the office, Sobrito greets her by saying, “Have you had breakfast yet?”

Sobrito was always prepared for Grecco’s reply of “no” with coffee and blueberry bagels, Grecco said.

Grecco never had the heart to tell Sobrito that she really did not like blueberry bagels. However, after two years as Sobrito’s office aide, Grecco said she now loves them.

“I actually buy the same kind [of bagels] that she does now, and [I] eat them all the time,” Grecco said.

Sobrito has become a mentor for her, Grecco said, and has given advice concerning her career, relationships and family.

“It’s been from one end of the spectrum to the other — from professional to personal advice,” Grecco said.

For Kokonos, Sobrito has also been a mentor and a second mom, Kokonos said.

“She’s a very trusting and comforting person and she’s very easy to talk to … “She always goes out of her way to make sure you’re having a good day,” Kokonos said.

Sobrito said she is very close with her students and keeps in contact with them even after they graduate.

If it were not for her three children and eight grandchildren living in California, Sobrito said she would keep working at SU. As it is, the bulk of her family lives in California and New Mexico, and she wants to move closer to them to be a bigger part of their lives, Sobrito said. Sobrito grew up in California and moved to Shippensburg with her husband, who was originally from Chambersburg.

Sobrito’s advice to students before she and her tie-dyie sneakers slip out of Rowland for the last time is to live for themselves and focus on making their dreams happen.

“How you live today determines how you live tomorrow, so make smart choices,” Sobrito said.

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