The Alumni Association went “Back to the Future” with Homecoming 2004 this past weekend. Events spanning Thursday through Saturday entertained alumni from throughout the university’s history and brought them together with current students to reminisce.
Homecoming started on Thursday with the Distinguished Alumni and Distinguished Service Awards Program, held in the Recreation Center, where six alumni were honored before the university.
On Friday, guests were invited to participate in the Quinnipiac Classic Sal Vece Memorial Alumni Golf Tournament at Laurel Hill Country Club in Hamden in the morning with an awards program and barbeque following in the afternoon.
That evening, alumni were invited to attend a Welcome Back party with live music from Art Kadish. Graduates from the last decade could enjoy the Young Alumni Night that accompanied the party. Both events were held in the dining hall.
Saturday was the culmination of Homecoming weekend, with more events and activities for alumni to enjoy. There were athletic and alumni intramural games on the athletic fields from 9 a.m. until noon, as well as collegiate sporting events throughout the day.
Campus tours were available all day, as well as an open house of the Terry W. Goodwin ’67 Financial Technology Center in Tator Hall. Alumni could share coffee and conversation with President Lahey and his cabinet to discuss the future of the university earlier in the day. There was also the Golden Bobcat Luncheon, where members of the Larson College and JCC Classes of 1953 and 1954 were able to gather together and share their college experiences with later generations.
The May Weekend Remembered barbeque and Affinity Group reunions, held on the quadrangle on Saturday afternoon, garnered strong participation from both alumni and current students. There were inflatable activities for alumni and their children to enjoy, live music from Dave Binder and a variety of food from the grill. Binder sang cover songs ranging from Jimmy Buffet to Dave Matthews Band, and there were people dancing on the grass throughout the afternoon.
Tents were arranged around the quad for alumni to meet up with current members of student clubs and organizations. Organizations represented included accounting, cheerleaders, finance, Greek life, media groups, Physical Therapy, Psychology and SGA (Student Government Association). Yearbooks were available for purchase, as well as a variety of free items that were given away by the organizations.
Homecoming weekend commenced Saturday evening in the Recreation Center with a performance from The Cast of Beatlemania, a tribute group that performed songs from various stages of the Fab Four’s career in costumes that showed the changing styles of the original band members.
Overall, alumni seemed impressed by the weekend events. Angela Vigliotti Mazzarella ’95 has been to about five alumni events since her graduation. The business management major said, “It is nice to come back and see how things have expanded.” Mazzarella usually brings her four children with her because they “like to see where mommy went to school.”
Liz Natalie ’79 enjoyed meeting up with old friends from the newspaper and took a tour of the campus to see how things have progressed since her last visit. Natalie’s only complaint about the weekend was a lack of faculty and staff presence. She said, “I would have liked to see more professors represented and see who is still here from our time.”
The weekend appeared to be a big success, with fun had by all in attendance.
