Dave Covington talks with students in Alter Hall.
When Fox School students return to Alter Hall to begin Fall classes, they may notice someone is missing. Recessed lighting still brightens the lobby, but an electric smile no longer lights up the room—the smile’s owner being now-retired security guard Dave Covington.
To know Covington is to have experienced a warm, light-hearted greeting each day.
“Good morning!”
“Howdy do?”
“You’re going to be late for class!”
Wednesdays seemed to be Covington’s favorite day, as he would utter his iconic line, “Happy Hump Day,” to greet the masses at the week’s midway point.
Since Alter Hall opened in 2009, Covington has been its gatekeeper. He began his career at Temple University on July 17, 1977, in the bookstore. Then he worked in Speakman Hall through the 1980s.
“I worked in shipping and receiving for three years,” he said. “Some of my fondest memories there were the Christmas parties we had—after the boss left, we sang Christmas carols over the PA system.”
After a switch to a “nice, easy job” in security on December 3, 1980, Covington was in for a surprise.
“They threw me to the wolves,” he said. “My first assignment was the dorms—J&H, 1300, Peabody, and McGonigle. Finally I told them, I need help!”
Encouraged by his colleagues to enter the Temple Municipal Police Academy, Covington completed the training in 1984 as part of the “Centennial” class of officers. However, he eventually returned to TU Security and was promoted to work in Speakman Hall, the business school building before Alter Hall was built.
“I’ve met some good folks in security over the years,” he said. “We used to have annual cookouts in Fairmount Park.”
Even with his salt and pepper hair and kind expression, there have been a few people who have dared to get past Covington. As a self-described “customer service” security guard, Covington has experienced people trying to push past, sneak by, or ask to “use the bathroom.” His years of service have added up to an instinct that is rarely wrong.
“I’ve learned to trust my gut,” he said.
Dave, our beloved security guard in Alter Hall, is retiring. We will definitely miss his happy greetings, but we wish him the best in his next chapter.
What's your favorite Dave memory? Reply to this tweet and we'll pass it along! pic.twitter.com/tx1OYgj03N
— Fox School (@foxschool) August 7, 2018
Covington, a diehard Philadelphia sports fan who earned a certificate in small business while working at Fox, grew up at 35th and Allegheny. As his city has changed, he has watched Temple and Fox do the same.
“It’s like an obstacle course around here,” he said. “There are so many new buildings.”
Over the years, food at Temple has been a pastime for Covington. He’ll miss gyros from Ernie’s Lunch Truck—a beloved food truck that’s tenure on campus hasn’t matched Covington’s, yet—the most. He liked his quick breakfasts of sausage, egg, and cheese in the quiet, secluded third floor PhD lab.
Retirement, for Covington, will take some getting used to. With a songlike rhythm to his voice, he spoke about what lies ahead. He’s been an early riser for the past 41 years, with a 6:30 a.m. roll call at Temple each day. His morning pleasantries, doled out by the hundreds for decades, will now be shared with just one special person: his wife, Naomi, a Temple graduate.
“She’s already got a honey-do list at home in Mount Airy,” he said.
An endless stream of well-wishers had kind words of farewell for Covington on his last morning in mid-August.
“I’ll miss messing with the pizza guys that came in to deliver at the student organization events,” he said. “Temple’s been good to me—what a journey, what a journey.”