Peter Kurecian, a graduate of Freedom High School, has been a season-ticket holder to Penn State football games since the 1970s. See PHOTOS and VIDEO. Watch video
As hundreds of former players waited in line on one side of the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center to pay their respects to Penn State legend Joe Paterno, another much smaller line started forming on the other side of the center. After the private viewing for the ex-players, a public viewing for alumni, students, fans and anyone else who wants to pay tribute to the football coaching great affectionately known as JoePa was scheduled to begin. It is expected to run from 1 o'clock this afternoon to 11 o'clock tonight.
Shortly before 1 o'clock, more than a thousand people were in a line that snaked for hundreds of yards outside the center.
Among those who claimed an early spot in the public line was Peter Kurecian, 57, of Hellertown. Kurecian, a Freedom High School graduate who is also a proud Penn State alumnus, was 15th in line.
"It's something I really felt I needed to do," said Kurecian, a season-ticket holder since 1972 whose son, Max, is currently a sophomore at Penn State.Kurecian drove up to State College by himself on Monday night and got in line at 9:45 this morning. He said he expected more people to be there early, but didn't mind waiting several hours to pay his respects.
"It's like a pilgrimage," he said, adding that several friends who are fellow alumni are planning to come to campus later in the afternoon to join him.Kurecian, who works for Lehigh Valley Dairy, choked up while talking about Paterno, who died on Sunday from complications from lung cancer.
Kurecian ran several hotels in the State College area in the 1980s and would often help make arrangements for players' parents through Paterno's secretary. He had an opportunity to meet Paterno face-to-face on a few occasions.
"There was just an aura about him," he said.As of 11 o'clock this morning, the line for the public viewing was starting to lengthen. A row of at least a dozen steel barricades had been erected for crowd control.