Larry and Katie Wiedman have spent more than half of their 40-year marriage connected to University of Saint Francis students. They relish unbreakable bonds.
“I’m a mother at heart,” Katie said. “Now, instead of just having two children, I have hundreds of children. They fulfill me. That’s what makes life worth living.”
Larry, known to many as “Doc,” shares his wife’s strong affection for students. Love, passion, commitment—those concepts spill over during any conversation with the Wiedmans, whether they’re talking about their marriage or their careers as USF educators, mentors and friends.
Larry and Katie both hold professor emeritus status at USF and continue to teach. Katie retired in August as USF Director of the Health and Exercise Science program, which she founded.
The Wiedmans’ influence on USF students extends far beyond the classroom, and graduation doesn’t mean goodbye.
“In the 20-some odd years I taught environmental science, I had something like 150 graduates and I probably have 130 of them on speed dial,” Larry said. “We get invited to so many weddings, it’s not even funny.”
High school sweethearts
The Wiedmans’ personal love story began at an early age.
“She didn’t like me when we first met,” said Larry, who is a year older than Katie.
“We met in church,” Katie said. “Fifth and sixth grade. I thought he was totally obnoxious. The Sunday School teacher agreed.”
“But I persisted,” Larry said, “and I eventually got the prize.”
Both raised in New Haven, Indiana, they dated in high school and at Ball State University. They were married in 1979, shortly after Katie earned her bachelor’s degree. Larry spent two years working in an oil field before settling into academia. He spent several years at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Ill., until the Wiedmans moved back home to Indiana to be closer to family. They had two young daughters, and it was important to them that the girls get to know their grandparents.
Larry landed a position at USF in 1993 and began a 20-plus year run at the university. Katie, who spent 15 years working as a dietitian, was eventually asked to teach at USF, too.
“Larry had been grooming himself to teach all his life, so he knew exactly what he was going to do from the time he was really young,” Katie said. “I never in my wildest dreams thought I’d ever do something like that.”
They were part of the USF Biology department for years while raising daughters Audrey and Claire.
Alongside their teaching duties, the Wiedmans home-schooled their daughters. Both daughters went on to earn multiple degrees, with Claire earning three at USF.
Fulfilling their visions
“Saint Francis gave us a lot of opportunities, just from the colleagues we met, the situations we were in and the students,” Larry said. “I had a vision of what I wanted my career to be and they let me (pursue that vision).”
Larry’s annual educational trips to the Bahamas and other locales where students could learn more about environmental science highlighted the year for many.
Katie became a change agent at USF, establishing the Exercise Science program as well as the Nutrition and Dietetics career paths. She established the Exercise Science and the Nutrition degree programs. “I like helping students get to where they want to go, all 150 or more of them,” she said. Katie had three graduates in Exercise Science 12 years ago; the two programs now graduate more than 30 students each year.
In other words, Katie always held students’ interests at heart.
“I don’t know anybody in the history of Saint Francis who has been fortunate enough to start a program from scratch, and she’s done two of them,” Larry said.
Since he retired from full-time teaching, Larry has expanded his artistic pursuits in wood carving, and his art is regularly featured in the Decatur Sculpture Tour. Katie enjoys gardening, sewing and cooking in her free time, and they both love spending time with their grandchildren.
In 2017, the “Lawson-Wiedman Prairie” dedication put their family names on a USF campus site used
by students in environmental science study.
“I said to Sister Elise when I was standing there at the dedication, ‘I didn’t give a million dollars,’”
Larry said. “She said, ‘You gave more than that.’”