LINDA G. HUGHES , January 1973-May 1976  (I was Girl in Black for my freshman fall semester in 1971, then named Golden Girl in my sophomore spring semester, January 1973.)

Home: Indianapolis, IN

Current occupation: Marketing Director at Northwest Radiology Network

Past jobs/life situations that have contributed to the richness of my life: My relationship with God, family, friends and sports.

Hobbies/passions that I enjoy: Tennis, tae kwon do, dancing, volleyball, wind surfing, water skiing, swimming, golf, pool, auto racing, air shows, concerts, movies.

What made/makes the Golden Girl position so special: The opportunity to travel around the world; camaraderie of the band; a variety of fun times and friendships; and chance to positively impact people through a position in the public eye, and, therefore, media.

How being Golden Girl has shaped/impacted my life beyond Purdue: Working with media as much as I did as Golden Girl, I lucked out and decided on a career in media relations and journalism. And it is a fun job that I have always loved and been thankful for.

Favorite memories from being Golden Girl: One show where my father, the late Max M. Hughes, was on the field with me meant a great deal to me. And another show touched me greatly when a fan gave me a huge framed collage of photos, including one with my deceased mother, Lois M. Hughes.

I grew up in Rensselaer, Indiana, where the Chicago Bears football team trained at St. Joseph College for years.  In between practices, several football players would stop and watch me practice as there was not that much to do in a town of 5,000. 

 In the book, Brian Piccolo...a Short Season, by Jeannie Morris, on pages 116 and 117, you read about an experience that Brian Piccolo had when he pulled over to talk with me while I practiced. 

 "One day we saw this little girl on a street corner, and she was twirling a baton.  And she was pretty good.  Not only that, she was pretty good-looking.  We had seen her in years past with the baton, but now she was about thirteen.  And she'd changed a lot, as girls will. 

 "Brian insisted on pulling over.  And he started talking to her, asking her how long she'd been working with the baton...things like that.  As he was talking, I could see the expression on the girl's face.  She just started bubbling.  Pretty soon her father came out, and they all carried on a conversation, with the little girl still the center of attention. 

"I'll never forget Brian's parting words.  He said, 'I'm going to be going down to a Purdue game in a couple years, and I plan to see you on the field at half time.  You will be Purdue's Golden Girl!'  It was all he had to say.  You could tell from her face that being Purdue's Golden Girl had been her dream."

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