Alumni, Mihaylo College of Business and Economics

Alumni

The ‘Three Amigas’ Put Their Stamp on Mihaylo Hall

“I wanted to meet the only other person who had questions,” says Hlavac, who then found they had a lot in common. “We were not traditional straight-out-of-high-school student,” adds Luther, “and we were both vocal in class.”

It’s one thing to make friends in college. It’s quite another when that friendship lasts 30 years, spans three corners of the country (California, Georgia and New York) and results in the names of the friends on a building at their alma mater. That’s just what happened with MaryLouise Hlavac ’80, Debra Luther ’80 and Mary H. Devine ’81. The three, who have been called the “three amigas,” had their friendship etched in stone, as it were, when their names were added to three adjoining faculty offices on the fourth floor of the new Steven G. Mihaylo Hall.

The friendship started in the 1970s when Hlavac and Luther met during their first accounting class at Cal State Fullerton. Hlavac noticed that she and Luther were the only two speaking up in class. “I wanted to meet the only other person who had questions,” says Hlavac, who then found they had a lot in common. “We were not traditional straight-out-of-high-school students,” adds Luther, “and we were both vocal in class.”

The two later took on leadership positions with Beta Alpha Psi and met Devine when they recruited her for the group. When their chapter won a national award in 1980, the three decided to go and accept the award at the national convention in Boston, stopping in New York City on the way. The trip solidified the friendship and instigated a big decision for Devine – she fell in love with New York City, took a job there after college and never moved back.

All three started their careers at Deloitte (then Deloitte, Haskins & Sells) and credit their time at Cal State Fullerton with preparing them. “I do not think if I had chosen a different university that I would’ve had the opportunity to be recruited,” says Hlavac. “Having the opportunity to work for a prestigious firm really opened doors.”

Devine is still in New York City, serving as the chief financial officer for Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. Luther is president of her own business, Exceptional Restaurant Company, based in Atlanta. Hlavac has worked for Boeing in Seal Beach for more than 23 years, managing a variety of accounting and finance areas.

Although living literally thousands of miles apart, the three are always on the lookout for events to bring them together. The most recent was the opening of Steven G. Mihaylo Hall, to which they’d each independently made identical contributions. “Maybe that’s why we’re such good friends,” says Hlavac. “We think alike.”

When the university found out what the three friends had done, their names were put on three adjoining offices – a great testament to the university and their friendship. “It’s an awesome building,” says Luther. “What a great flagship for the university.”

— Ann Shepphird

Produced by the Mihaylo College of Business and Economics at California State University, Fullerton.
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