Sue Paterno told a crowd of students and alumni participating in the annual "Guard the Lion Shrine" celebration Friday night about her own brush with a life of crime.
The sounds of local band Table Ten and scents of free food set the scene for the traditional celebration that saw an impressive turnout despite the wintry weather.
Paterno, who prompted the guarding of the shrine with her own act of vandalism, said she was disappointed with the Penn State spirit during football games in 1966, so along with two other coaches' wives, she decided to paint the Lion Shrine orange before the Syracuse Homecoming game.
"I just thought, 'Why do we just come here and sit? Why don't we scream and yell?' " Paterno said.
Paterno painted the shrine with a water-based orange paint while one of the other wives waited in their getaway car. They were anxious about getting caught, but she teased that going to jail would be a nice break from parenting three children.
She joked that she had a "burning desire" to paint the lion orange again this year before the Syracuse game, but she said there's no need anymore with Penn State's spirit so high -- as evidenced by Friday night's crowd.
"No one would dare touch our lion," Paterno said.
The event saw a good turnout, as people mingled and sampled food amidst the cold weather.
"Even though it's snowing and gross out, a lot of people were here early," said Corie-Mae Myers (junior-communications sciences and disorders), one of the Lion Ambassadors who helped organize the event. The ROTC guarded the lion from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. all week, ending the watch at 11 p.m. on Friday, said Army ROTC Commanding Officer of the Lion's Guard Bobby Ettorre (senior-economics). Two ROTC cadets were present at the shrine at all times, and the guards rotated in half-hour shifts throughout the week.
Army ROTC Cadet Shane Yingling guarded the lion Friday night and said he is proud to be a part of the tradition.
It's fun when everyone is there Friday night, he said, but it's also nice the rest of the week, when the guards have a chance to bond.
Yingling (sophomore-criminal law and justice) said ROTC members aren't allowed to smile or acknowledge anyone while guarding the lion, but students do try to mess with them sometimes.
While Yingling guarded the lion, the Lion Ambassadors performed a skit to teach those in attendance about the history of vandalism against the lion.
Lion Ambassadors also held a creamery ice cream competition, where attendees had to guess the flavor of the ice cream. The winner won two tickets to the Homecoming football game.
Sarah Bass said she enjoyed her first time at "Guard the Lion" and didn't let the early snowfall keep her from coming.
"We can all wear a hat or coat. I think this is important," Bass (freshman-engineering) said.
