Kansas City Native Enjoys Pittsburg Life

The City of Pittsburg rose from the intersection of 4th and Broadway, depicted here today.

Ethan Salvino, a freshman at Pittsburg State University, recently won a gift card to Jock’s Nitch as part of a giveaway we ran on the @pittkan Instagram account. 

When we met up to give him the gift card, the Overland Park native explained how excited he was to win and that he is a fourth-generation PSU Gorilla. So we decided to do a little interview and get to know him better.

Here are a few excerpts from our interview:

Fourth-generation Gorilla, eh? What are your earliest memories of Pittsburg and Pitt State?

I can remember as a real little kid coming down to attend PSU football games and just driving through town. We’d always go get ice cream and then hit Chicken Mary’s. Oh, and we’d always visit the Frontenac Bakery to get bread. We love that bread. 

So what are you studying at Pitt State and why?

I’m majoring in business management with a minor in economics. I’d really like to go into healthcare administration. I’ve always wanted a career in which I could help people, and at one point I thought I’d go into nursing. Then I realized how I react to seeing blood, so I switched gears to go into the business side of healthcare. My dream job would be to work at Children’s Mercy.

Coming from Kansas City, what do you think of Pittsburg? 

At first I was worried about whether or not I’d like it here because it is a lot smaller, but honestly, I really do enjoy being here. I think because it’s smaller, it feels more tightly-knitted together. The community gets involved in a lot of things, and it’s just a nice community feel. There’s also a lot of freedom down here. You can get out in nature, enjoy the country life, and even have some bonfires with friends, which obviously we aren’t able to do in the city.

The other thing I really like about Pittsburg is the look of downtown. I love the old buildings, the architecture, the old-timey shops. Pittsburg has a lot of neat places to eat and hang out. 

Being a fourth-generation Gorilla, is your family’s house in Kansas City just full of Pitt State stuff?

It’s funny, actually. My mom graduated from KU, my dad from Pitt State, and my brother is going to Central Missouri. So there is definitely a little rivalry going on, but it’s fun. It’s fun having some competition in the house.

So what made you follow your dad and choose Pitt State?

I did look around at other schools before choosing Pitt, but ultimately it came down to academics. The business school here is amazing. The teachers are so caring toward the students. They really want us to succeed.