Members of Boston College’s staff serve as the heartbeat of this institution. Our community is incredibly fortunate to have this team of “Men and Women for Others,” tirelessly working to ensure the standard of living we have become so accustomed to on this campus. We hope to recognize their impact through their stories. This is Tony Bianchi’s story. Check out the others here.
Entering O’Neill Library late at night, the exhausted and stressed appearances of students can often be disheartening. Among the desolation of students hard at work, security guard Tony Bianchi exists as a source of hope and humor for discouraged students.
Frequenters of O’Neill will recognize Bianchi as the library’s unsung hero and jokester. Whether it’s sitting at the lobby security desk or making rounds through each floor, Bianchi maintains an upbeat and easygoing attitude while interacting with students during his late-night shift. Recognizing the stress that students working late in O’Neill are experiencing, Bianchi likes to joke with students that appear to be struggling. He tries to help students with their work by giving them a quick relief from their stress.
“You can sense I always throw the humor into this job,” Bianchi said.
Since he has three children, Bianchi originally took the job with BC security when he needed additional part-time employment to support his family. As his children grew older and he needed money, he began to take on more hours.
Over his 19-year career at Boston College, Bianchi has worked security at a variety of buildings on campus. To him, each building creates a distinct atmosphere. He likes to give an extra “nudge” to the science students in Merkert, who he believes particularly need the extra encouragement. Interacting with students studying education in Campion has also brought joy to his work. Meeting students from different areas of BC, who are all studying a variety of academic backgrounds, has helped to keep the job interesting for him.
“I actually like it because it gives me the chance to move around and get to see different people,” Bianchi said.
Bianchi manages to maintain his humor with students even when he must address difficult matters of security on campus. When he has to tell students in O’Neill to quiet down, he is still able to get the job done “nicely,” he says.
“You have to do something that you have to do. It’s not always about the security end of things. You have to kind of make sure everyone’s comfortable,” Bianchi said.
Besides his work in O’Neill and academic buildings, Bianchi also enjoys getting to work at milestones in every BC student’s career, such as Marathon Monday and Commencement Day. He appreciates the opportunity to meet new students and faculty at such events and around campus, but he also enjoys seeing his “regulars” in O’Neill. After 19 years observing BC’s campus, he appreciates interacting with its students most. Bianchi has a passion for travel and takes a special interest in national parks, but he also savors the opportunities to interact locally with members of the BC community.
“It’s a nice institution. It’s a little bit more easygoing than other places are, and the people are wonderful … BC kind of grows on you. You feel more at home with this over the years,” Bianchi said.
