M Union Once 'For Men Only'

Franklin C. Kuenzel of 243 Newport, general manager of the Michigan Union, will be honored at a retirement ■uncheon Tuesday in Union dining facilities where he started out working as a student waiter more than 40 years ago. Kuenzel, 65, will officially retire on June 30 from the bost he has held for 29 years. Following retirement, he plans jto pursue his favorite hobby of fly fishing for trout. He also expects to travel widely. A membsr of the U-M's 1927 championship basketball team, Kuenzel began working in the imposing brick structure on State St. as a freshman in 1923 and has spent his working days in the building ever sincc. During thdt time he has had an opportunity to meet presidents and princes, opera stars and actors, and a whole Igalaxy of prominent world figures who have come to Ann Arbor over the years to speak, perform or be honored. He has seen the Michigan Union change during his tenure from a strictly men's club to a coeducational activities center and public meeting place. When it was built in 1916, it was the first large student union building in the United States, Kuenzel says. The unïon idea started with debating societies at English universities and was first started in the United States at Harvard he says. Reluctant to talk about himself Kuenzel went on to teil about the changes that have taken place in the Michigan Union over the years. During World War I, the still unfinished building was occupied by soldiers. After that war, one of its major functions, in addition to serving as a men's club, became that ot providing f od services for students who lived mainlv in roommg houses throughout Ann Arbor. "A big change came later with the building of student rdormitones with dining rooms," thus reducing the need of f the Union to provide student meals. "The next big change came after World War II with the employment of both male and female waiters and then the opening up of facilities to both men and women Then another major change took place about five years ago when the Union became a coeducational activities center, he says. Before World War II there were separate dining rooms for men and women, and women were allowed only in the main dining room on Sundays. The cafetería was opened to women only ol. special occasions. Then known as the Tap Room, it had a soda bar with a brass rail, Kuenzel recalls. "In the eaily days the women's dining room was pretty much staffed with dental students. U-M athletes comprised a large portion of the all-male staff of waiters, and most of the All-Americans of years gone by served table in the Michigan Union," the retiring manager remembers. Up until World War II, when jobs were hard to get, students who obtained jobs at the Union kept them throughout their college careers. A few years back the Michigan Union employed 165 students and 160 full-time workers. Today it employs 40 students and 85 full-time workers. The once-famous Union Opera, with its all-male casts and original musical scores, provided major financial support to the Unior. during its early years, raising some $250,000 for completion of its construction. "The opera was a big thing in the early years, but it came to an abrupt end with the 1929 crash and later attempts to revive it failed, Kuenzel observed. Some 63,000 men are life members of the Michigan Union, including many of the nation's prominent citizens. Bom in Grand Rapids in 1904, Kuenzel was graduated from Union High School there before enrolling at the U-M where he obtained a bachelor of arts degree in 1927 He later pursued studies in the School of Business Administration. He has a summer home on the North Branch of the Au Sable River: near Lovells in northern Michigan where he expects to speed a lot of time fishing during the warm months after retirement. In the winters, he and his wife Clara, expect to spend considerable time riding horses iñ Anzona. The Kuenzels recently returned from a trip to Europe and expect to continue with their travels. They have a son, James of Big Rapids, and a daughter, Mrs Duane (Nancv) Peterson of Ann Arbor.