FRONTLINE: Dossier

Villanova’s Father Peter Donohue

Father Peter Donohue, New President of Villanova University

Book on his nightstand: Blood Done Sign My Name by Timothy Tyson. It’s the book everyone on campus is asked to read, and the author usually comes to speak in the spring. The book is meant to provoke dialogue on campus.
iPod tunes on repeat: I keep Broadway music on shuffle on my iPod. I’ve been listening to The Jersey Boys because I want to see it.
Restaurant of the hour: Tango. I like the location—that it’s just off the railroad tracks—and the staff is great.
Personal hero: My younger sister. She was mentally retarded and has since passed away, but she taught me what I needed to know—which was the ability to accept people and welcome them the way they are. One thing he knows for sure: That I’ve made the right decisions in terms of my life—like becoming an Augustinian. I had a friend say to me once that when the bad days start to outnumber the good days, you’re doing the wrong thing. I don’t have bad days.
Zen destination: New York City. I get rejuvenated when I go. There’s so much to do, so much going on and so many different people. If he had an extra hour each day, he would: Sleep.
Pet peeve: Somebody who lacks common sense.
Defining trait: My sense of humor.
Quality he most admires in others: Generosity.
Chance or fate? Neither. I don’t believe that anything happens by chance, nor is anything fated. We just make choices.
Mantra: One day at a time. I look at each day as a different opportunity. I’m in the same place every day, but different people come in with different things. I take the moments and cherish them.

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