Mayor Tom Ross proclaims Feb. 4 as Bev Alex Appreciation Day. Photo by Sean Arbaut.

Seeing Bev Alex on the third-floor walking track of the Minot State University Dome was an extraordinary part of a regular weekday work-day. The part time Athletic Department gaming guru who turned 90 years old on Feb. 4 has worked for MSU for 57 years.

Regarding her transition to the Athletic Department after her retirement from the MSU business office 22 years ago, Alex said, “I was done over there on a Friday and came over here on Monday.” Working on the second floor of the MSU Dome, Alex spends mornings counting the gaming money for the Beaver Boosters and doing other various administrative tasks, even taking her paperwork home with her some days.

“I would assume it to be true that I am the longest running employee. I am proud to be a Minot State Beaver, and I attend almost every ball game, whether it is football, basketball, softball, all of them. I like numbers and really enjoyed my years in the business office, but I am loving this because I like sports,” Alex said.

On her birthday, Alex said, MSU went all out, which isn’t usually her thing. She modestly described the public spectacle as not necessary, but so appreciated.

“I knew something was going to happen, but I didn’t know what, and then between the men’s game and the women’s game they presented me with a bag full of gifts and Emerson Eads sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to me and the mayor, Tom Ross, made a proclamation that February 4, 2023, was Bev Alex Appreciation Day.”

Alex had purchased an MSU Dome seat several years ago as part of a promotion MSU was running, but with her long-standing employment appreciation, her seat is now green, rather than red. MSU also furnished Alex with her own front row parking spot, which as most students and faculty can relate, is an esteemed gesture. Alex said there’s been so many times she pulls up and there’s no spots available, although walking is no worry. Alex enjoys walking recreationally anyway, but she sure likes this parking spot a lot more.

Alex previously was inducted into the MSU Hall of Fame and has Grand Marshaled a state parade during the North Dakota State Fair.

“Forty-two years ago, my husband passed. I’ve been alone for 42 years. I thought about that not too long ago and how it doesn’t seem possible,” Alex said. “Nobody else came along, and I’ve really done well, I think.”

As for now, Alex has no plans to re-retire and said she is grateful they let her work and be a part of MSU.

“I need something to do. I am not the type to sit around and not do anything. It’s been good for me, especially since my husband passed. This has been a blessing. You need communication with people. I would go crazy if I didn’t have something to do,” she said.