Denise and Michael Behm, and their children Deana and Matthew Banas, are proud to call themselves an Aquinas family. In a tradition started by Denise, who graduated in 2004, every member of the family has entered Aquinas; and although Michael and Deana will graduate together in May 2012, sophomore Matthew will remain to continue their close ties to the school.

“I was very happy [when my family decided to attend Aquinas], and knew that they would all be in good hands and would be receiving an excellent education,” Denise said. “We all had different experiences, and our needs were different, and Aquinas has met all our needs tremendously. All of us have been extremely satisfied and pleased with everything Aquinas has to offer.”

Denise entered Aquinas in 1998 as a stay-at-home mom and avid volunteer in her community. In 2004 she graduated with her Bachelor of Arts degree in education and communication, and began working as a long-term substitute in Wayland Union Schools. Since 2008, Denise has been the Executive Director at the Wayland Area Chamber of Commerce.

“Aquinas was like a second family to me. The professors treated me with respect and they truly cared about each and every student,” Denise said. “I remember hearing how [communication professor Dr. Dave Weinandy] fell in love with Aquinas during his interview there, and his love of AQ and his subject matter really showed.”

As Denise and Michael both point out, each member of the family entered Aquinas with different needs, and had much different experiences. When Michael and Deana entered, both were commuting from home and taking classes on top of full-time jobs. While Michael was a continuing education student and will earn his degree in computer information systems, Deana was a traditional student who had attended Grand Rapids Community College for two years and transferred to Aquinas, where she completed her business and communication majors in December.

“I was concerned about being a nontraditional aged student returning as a continuing education student, but the professors and my classmates made me feel welcoming in the classroom and around campus,” Michael said. “There are many campus activities structured around and specifically for continuing education students which allowed me to connect with other students I may not get to meet in classes.”

Deana, in order to graduate from Aquinas debt-free, was also working full-time at United Bank, where she has been the Assistant Manager since 2010. As Deana recalls, forgetting dinner in the rush between work and school wasn’t so bad, since she was fortunate to have younger brother Matthew living on campus. Whether it was swipes into Wege or even a delivered hot chocolate from the Moose, as Deana jokingly put it, “I appreciated the room service.”

“I knew my mother had a great experience at Aquinas, so I decided to take the leap. From the moment I enrolled I knew it was the best decision for me,” Deana said. “Each of us has had amazing opportunities through Aquinas and it is awesome to be able to share the experiences we all had at Aquinas together.”

Matthew is planning to graduate in 2014 with an international business major and Japanese minor. As a member of SIFE and a Japanese minor, Matthew was one of the two students who traveled to Japan in July 2011 to help with the tsunami and earthquake relief efforts.

“Aquinas has been a terrific experience so far for me and I believe it will continue being a good experience,” Matthew said. “It has been an interesting experience… sometimes my phone buzzed and it was my sister or my father trying to get a free meal swipe. One time last year I surprised my sister by delivering hot cocoa to her class in the library, she was so excited to see her little bro!”

Although Matthew was the last member of the family to enter Aquinas, he was the first to live on campus. Despite moving away from home, Matthew stayed connected to his family; and Michael, in particular, as they would meet every Wednesday night for dinner. But it was the freshman move-in experience which really stood out for Denise and Michael.

“That was something the whole family attended and got to experience,” Michael said. “It is an experience through which we see him growing not only educationally, but emotionally as well.”

Both Denise and Deana are considering returning to Aquinas as Masters students. While Denise hopes to continue her communication studies, Deana would like to enter the Masters program in sustainable business.

“Aquinas has allowed our entire family the opportunity to succeed,” Michael said. “Succeed in our individual educational goals, succeed in life through our education, and most importantly, succeed as a family who accomplished these goals together.”