A variety of activities have been scheduled for the annual Homecoming Weekend at Hope College, running Friday-Sunday, Oct. 9-11.
Highlights include the rededication of Graves Hall, a tailgate picnic for alumni, a celebration of 100 years of Hope football, home football and men's soccer games, the 175th-anniversary celebration of the Fraternal Society, a worship service, and reunions for the classes of 1989, 1994, 1999 and 2004. The weekend is expected to bring hundreds of alumni back to campus.
Many of the Homecoming events are open to the public.
Hope will hold a rededication ceremony for Graves Hall on Friday, Oct. 9, at noon. There will also be open houses on Saturday, Oct. 10, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 11, from 1 to 3 p.m. Admission is free.
During the 30-minute rededication ceremony, the college's Alumni Association will present a Meritorious Service Award to Dr. Elton Bruins, a 1950 Hope graduate who is former director of the college's A.C. Van Raalte Institute and the Evert J. and Hattie E. Blekkink Professor Emeritus of Religion at Hope.
On Friday, Oct. 9, at 3:30 p.m., Dr. A. Paul Schaap, a 1967 Hope graduate who is a member of the college's Board of Trustees, will present "Chemiluminescence and 1,2-Dioxetanes: From Fireflies to the Detection of DNA" in the DeWitt Center main theatre. Admission is free.
Schaap is retired from the WayneStateUniversity faculty and from Lumigen Inc., the company which he founded in 1987 to commercialize the dioxetanes (high-energy chemical compounds which can be triggered to generate light) developed in his research laboratory. He will be speaking through the college's Gentile Interdisciplinary Lectureship, a divisional seminar in the natural sciences named in honor of Dr. James Gentile, a former dean for the natural sciences who is now president of Research Corporation.
The college's orchestra will present a concert on Friday, Oct. 9, at 7:30 p.m. in Dimnent Memorial Chapel. Admission is free.
The De Pree Art Center will be featuring the exhibition "Margaret Cogswell: River Fugues" from Tuesday, Oct. 6, through Saturday, Nov. 7, with a reception on Friday, Oct. 9, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. The regular gallery hours are: Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.
The Hope-Geneva Bookstore in the DeWitt Center will be open on Saturday, Oct. 10, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The bookstore will also sponsor a tent staffed by members of the college's Alumni Board and featuring selected Hope merchandise, primarily clothing, at Holland Municipal Stadium on Saturday from 1:30 p.m. through the end of the college's game with AlbionCollege.
There will be an alumni lacrosse game on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 10 a.m. on the front lawn of the DeVos Fieldhouse. Admission is free.
The Alumni H-Club's annual Homecoming luncheon will begin on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 11 a.m. at the DeVos Fieldhouse. A reunion of alumni who played football will commemorate the 100 years that football has been an intercollegiate sport at the college. In addition, the H-Club will present its "Hope for Humanity Award" to 1984 Hope graduate Dr. Jaci L. VanHeest of Enfield, Conn., an exercise physiologist on the faculty of the University of Connecticut whose work to counteract childhood obesity has received national attention.
There will be a tailgate picnic for alumni and their families on Saturday, Oct. 10, from noon to 2 p.m. at Smallenberg Park. Tickets for the sixth annual picnic may be ordered in advance for $5 for adults and children age five and above, with admission free for children under five, by sending a check to: Hope College; Alumni Relations; PO Box 9000; Holland, MI 49422-9000 or by credit card by calling (616) 395-7250, or by registering online at www.hope.edu/alumni/. Tickets will also be sold on-site.
In place of a Homecoming parade this year, student organizations are arranging displays and will make presentations at the park in conjunction with the picnic.
The Flying Dutchmen will host Albion in football at Holland Municipal Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 2 p.m. Tickets are $7 for reserved seats, $5 for adult general admission, $3 for general admission for those under 18, and free for children five and under. They are being sold in advance at the ticket office in the front lobby of the DeVos Fieldhouse, which faces Fairbanks Avenue between Ninth and 11th streets and is open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets will also be available at the gate.
The pre-game show, which begins at 1:30 p.m., will feature the Schoolcraft High School band. Halftime will feature the band; the presentation of the 14th annual "Faculty Appreciation Award," as chosen by the student body, to Dr. Steven Hoogerwerf of the Hope religion faculty; the presentation of an award of appreciation for service to Hope to Dr. James Boelkins, Hope's provost, who is retiring at the end of the school year; the introduction of the Homecoming Court; and the crowning of the Homecoming king and queen. In addition, the college's chapter of Mortar Board will be holding a children's book drive at the stadium beginning at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Men's soccer will host Olivet College on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 4 p.m. at the Van Andel Soccer Stadium. Admission is free.
A Homecoming worship service will be held on Sunday, Oct. 10, at 10 a.m. in Dimnent Memorial Chapel. The service will feature the college's Chapel Choir and Alumni Chapel Choir under the direction of Dr. Brad Richmond of the Hope faculty. The guest preacher will be the Rev. Kate Davelaar, a chaplain at Hope.
Events for the reunion classes include a celebration brunch at the Haworth Inn and Conference Center and evening parties on Saturday. The weekend will also feature the 175th anniversary celebration of the college's Fraternal Society fraternity, and a variety of departmental and affinity-group reunions and events. Friday evening, former players and coaching staff will celebrate the career of Ray Smith, who retired from the Hope faculty in May as professor of kinesiology and director of athletics for men. Smith was the football coach at Hope for 25 seasons, through the fall of 1994, and also served as golf coach, wrestling coach and assistant baseball coach.
The De Pree Art Center is located on Columbia Avenue at 12th Street. The DeVos Fieldhouse is located facing Fairbanks Avenue between Ninth and 11th streets. The DeWitt Center is located on Columbia Avenue at 12th Street. Dimnent Memorial Chapel is located on College Avenue at 12th Street. The Haworth Inn and Conference Center is located on College Avenue between Ninth and 10th streets. Holland Municipal Stadium and SmallenbergPark are located on Fairbanks Avenue at 13th Street. Van Andel Soccer Stadium is located on Fairbanks Avenue between Ninth and 11th streets.
A full schedule of Homecoming activities and a link to the online registration are available at www.hope.edu/alumni/