Of all the tributes, thank-you's and well-wishing James V. Koch has received on the eve of his retirement as president, perhaps none was more gratifying than the surprise message from a former Old Dominion student that appeared recently in his e-mail.

Karlotta Richards, a 1992 graduate with a bachelor's degree in psychology and a Kaufman Prize winner, wrote President Koch to tell him of her decision to start making an annual gift of $1,000 to her alma mater.

But it wasn't the pledge of financial support that touched him as much as her other reason for writing: to let him know that, in addition to one's college professors and classmates, even a president can make a lasting impact on the life of a student.

Richards, who went on to earn a doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Southern Mississippi and currently works as an Army psychologist at Fort Bragg, N.C., wrote, "I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all you have done to make Old Dominion such a special place. You have lifted the university to higher heights. I would also like to thank you for the tremendous impact you have had in my life as a student and person.

"I can still vividly recall seeing you playing basketball in the gym with the students. To me, that was the first indication that Old Dominion was fortunate to have selected you as our president.

"Over the years, the institution has been on such higher ground that I have to pinch myself every time I return. I feel so proud to have been a graduate!"

For President Koch, who was well-known for his standing invitation to students to have lunch with him to discuss issues of concern to them - "My treat," he always said - it must have been particularly gratifying to read Richards' final words.