There are plenty of ways one can celebrate Valentine’s Day in college. Students can go on a date with a significant other, have a movie night in with roommates, decorate desserts at a “galentines” party or do just about anything else one’s imagination can dream up in a red-and-pink theme. One tradition that is specific to Villanova, though, and promises to feature in everyone’s plans one way or another, is the Villanova Singers Singing Valentines campaign.
Every year on Valentine’s Day since 1979, the all-male singing group can be seen running around campus in quartets, fully dressed up in tuxedos, and barging into classrooms or waking up unsuspecting students with their serenading skills. They perform “You Are My Valentine,” a short song modeled after the universally known “You Are My Sunshine,” to each shocked recipient.
“[Usually] people are a little shy or bashful about it,” Villanova Singer’s President Marco Klisch said. “But it’s honestly so much fun to be able to bring that fun realization to people about what is going on.”
But regardless of the slight embarrassment that comes with being serenaded in the middle of an otherwise mundane class day, these Valentine messages create fond memories for students to look back on (once the blush eventually subsides).
“It is a great gift to give someone,” junior Julia Prendergast said. “It was super funny when they walked into my classroom, and it brightened my day. My Latin class all loved it.”
Student reactions and engagement outside of the group itself are obviously important. However, that doesn’t mean the Singers see this day as a tedious part of their club commitments. Performing in every part of campus possible creates scores of unique memories and experiences that the Singers share and remember long after Valentine’s Day is over.
“[One year] we were doing wake-up calls, and we had the golf cart down by Campus Corner, when I snapped the key off in the ignition,” Treasurer Aleko Zeppos shared.
“Then, the five of us had to run back to the Connelly Center in our tuxedos. I remember it was freezing, and there were kids trying to walk to their 8:30s, and it looked like the men in black were chasing them.”
This tradition has made quite the comeback in the years post-Covid and has now become an icon of the spring semester. As the club’s main fundraising effort for the entire year, members couldn’t be more excited to see their schedule fill up each Feb. 14.
“Every single one of the Singers participates across campus,” Klisch said. “We need all hands on deck because between all the wake-ups, all the class calls. It gets pretty busy. Especially to do all that in one day, we have [to have] all Singers doing it.”
The Singers have a unique and incredibly strong culture among the members, both on campus and with alumni supporters. They perform, travel, network and spend time together all year long. The Singing Valentines are just one of the most forward-facing representations of that bond.
“Our alumni song that we sing at every concert, with the alumni that spans back to the ‘50s, is called ‘Brothers Sing On,’” Zeppos said. “It really is brotherhood. It’s just a great way to meet some really great people, that are current students and beyond, that are very accomplished in the world.”
This year, Singing Valentines will be delivered on Friday, Feb. 13, through wake-up calls to any student dorm on campus and to classrooms throughout the day (with certain professors being marked off-limits).
Other options include calls and emails that will be delivered on actual Valentine’s Day. The Singing Valentines can be ordered online and are available for purchase through Feb. 10.
