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<p>If you&#8217;re digging for a historic ground breaking, it makes sense to use a historic shovel.</p><p>As Marjorie Henry Marquart prepared to break ground for a Misericordia University building named for her father, the shovel in her hands was as historic as it gets: The same tool used in a 1922 ceremony beginning construction of the motherhouse of the Sisters of Mercy when they arrived to found Misericordia.</p><p>In fact, the engraved silver shovel is said to have been used for every groundbreaking ceremony at the venerable school.</p><p>Marquart probably got the biggest laugh from the crowd of about 200 faculty, students,staff and dignitaries gathered in the corner of a parking lot that will disappear once the new wing is added to the existing science center. A previous speaker had mentioned that, when Misericordia searched for a president, completing the science building was a top priority.</p><p>&#8220;I just want to clear one thing up,&#8221; Marquart said, &#8220;There is no search for a new president going on.&#8221; President Thomas Botzman, sitting nearby, clapped.</p><p>Her late father Frank Henry had been the lead donor when the university kicked off its &#8220;Now for Tomorrow&#8221; campaign to raise money for the $45 million expansion of the &#8220;Frank M. and Dorothea Henry Science Center,&#8221; but Marquart kept the focus on the students and faculty who will use it.</p><p>&#8220;Believe me, my father would say &#8216;OK, that&#8217;s enough about me. Today is about Misericordia University&#8217;,&#8221; she said. &#8220;Today is all about you.&#8221;</p><p>Botzman pointed out that, at 85,900 square feet, it will be the largest academic building on campus &#8212; and the most expensive. &#8220;Henry&#8217;s gift has been transformative in every way,&#8221; he said, promising more in the future.</p><p>&#8220;Misericordia has many more big ideas.&#8221;</p><p>The existing building went up in 1957 and was renovated in 1988. At 28,500 square feet it can hold no more than 800 students, less than a third of the nearly 3,000 enrolled at Misericordia. Other speakers extolled Henry for his foresight in supporting the center, noting every student will use it at one time or another after it opens in 2020.</p><p>Biology senior Michelle Ash touted her success in the existing science building where, she said with a laugh &#8220;I practically live in the first floor,&#8221; and told how the opportunities provided by Misericordia had helped her land a chance to do research in France and to get into a doctoral program in Chicago.</p><p>The new building, she said, will benefit &#8220;both the university and the nation, spreading Misericordia&#8217;s influence far beyond Pennsylvania.&#8221;</p><p>The new center will include a small mammal vivarium, aquatic/invertebrate vivarium, electronics/computer build lab,an organic chemistry lab with a nuclear magnetic resonance instrument, a cold room for advance molecular experiments, a cadaver suite and other labs dedicated to specific, high-tech subjects.</p><p>All ceremoniously launched with 97-year-old shovel engraved with the names of the first three religious sisters who helped start it: &#8220;Mother Mercedes McHale, Mother Superior Gertrude Kerwin and Mother Cecilia Hueston.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Misericordia President Thomas Botzman Ph.D grabs a shovel for the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Frank M. and Dorthea Henry Science Center. Aimee Dilger|Times Leader </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/web1_TTL041819TLmirseri1-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Misericordia President Thomas Botzman Ph.D grabs a shovel for the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Frank M. and Dorthea Henry Science Center. Aimee Dilger|Times Leader </caption0><photoCredit0>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/web1_TTL041819TLmirseri2-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Guests chuckle as Sandy Insalaco makes a joke during the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Frank M. and Dorthea Henry Science Center. Aimee Dilger|Times Leader </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/web1_TTL041819TLmirseri2-2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Guests chuckle as Sandy Insalaco makes a joke during the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Frank M. and Dorthea Henry Science Center. Aimee Dilger|Times Leader </caption1><photoCredit1>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Misericordia breaks ground for science center expansion