Ouachita Stories

Highlighting the theme, “Memories and Milestones,” Ouachita Baptist University’s 2011 Homecoming week is set for Oct. 3-8.

The popular Ouachita traditions of Tiger Tunes, Homecoming court and Saturday afternoon football game will set the tone for the week. Students and alumni will have the opportunity to experience “the theme where ‘memories’ ties into Homecoming since so many alumni, parents and friends come home to Ouachita over that weekend and celebrate the many memories they made here,” said Lauren Land, Ouachita’s director of alumni. ”The ‘milestones’ pulls in the 125^th celebration and the many milestones our alumni, as well as Ouachita as a whole, have achieved through those many years.

“It’s important to honor our traditions while creating new ones so that today’s students really feel invested in both Homecoming and in Ouachita,” Land added. “The Homecoming Steering Committee has really made an effort to reach out to current students throughout the week to make sure everyone is included in the festivities.”

Festivities for students begin on Monday with Lunch on the Lawn, hosted by Student Senate, and the introduction of the 2011 Homecoming court nominees. “I see it as kind of the calm before the storm. There are a lot of great events happening during the week and people stay really busy,” said Student Senate President Jacob Lively, a senior biology major and from Queen City, Texas. “Lunch on the Lawn allows people to just use that lunch hour to just relax and not stress over all of the things they need to get done.”

The EEE social club will host a car decorating competition in the lower parking lot outside of Frances Crawford Hall at 3:30 p.m. on Monday. Eta Alpha Omega will host events throughout the week. Monday they will serve root beer floats, Wednesday they will serve chili dogs and Friday they will serve Frito chili pie. All of these events will be held in Grant Plaza at 12 noon. On Saturday, after the final Tiger Tunes performance, they will host their annual Muggin’ event, also in Grant Plaza.

Tuesday’s activities include a special 125^th anniversary Homecoming chapel and a dinner for alumni and their families who live in Clark County, hosted by Ouachita’s Alumni Office.

Wednesday, the Ouachita Alumni office will host a drop-in Chamber of Commerce Community Coffee beginning at 9:30 a.m. in the first floor lobby of Hickingbotham Hall. Tri Chi will host a Poster Party on the campus lawn during lunch to provide students the opportunity to show their school spirit. That night after dress rehearsal for Tiger Tunes, Student Senate will host a Tunes after party in the Ouachita Commons, where Tunes participants and all other students are invited to enjoy a time of food fun and campus fellowship.

On Thursday, Chi Delta will give students an opportunity during the lunch hour to tie-dye T-shirts for the football game. Prospective students will arrive on campus beginning at 5:30 p.m. for GROW (Getting Ready for Ouachita’s World). This weekend provides an opportunity for high school juniors and seniors interested in Ouachita to experience Ouachita and all it has to offer.

Tiger Tunes is “a huge pull for our alumni since so many performed in the show in past years,” Land emphasized. Tiger Tuges begins its 33^nd season on Thursday, Oct. 6, at 7:30 p.m. and continues Friday, Oct. 7, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 8, at 5 and 8:30 p.m. Tickets for all shows are currently sold out, but a waiting list for tickets is available at www.obutigertunes.com. All shows, hosted by the Ouachita Student Foundation (OSF), will be held in the Jones Performing Arts Center and will benefit student scholarships.

Refuge, a student-led worship service hosted by Campus Ministrie, will immediately follow Thursday’s Tiger Tunes show in the Student Village circle.

Continuing the celebration on Friday, Oct. 7, five distinguished members of Ouachita’s alumni community will participate in a panel discussion at 11 a.m. in Jones Performing Arts Center as part of the 2011 Ouachita Alumni Milestone Awards and will also be recognized during the halftime performance of Saturday’s football game. Recipients of the award include: Robert “Bob” Scott, OBU class of 1961, Euodias Goza, class of 1971, Kevin Crass, class of 1981, Shelby Phillips Breen, class of 1991, Brent Gambill, class of 2001 and Kristen Glover, class of 2011.

Also on Friday, Ouachita’s Tigersharks swimming and diving team will take on Henderson State University in the Battle of the Ravine Swim Meet at 6:30 p.m. at HSU’s Duke Wells Pool. For alumni of the classes of 1981 and 2001, class reunions will be held at 6:30 in the Walker Conference Center. Classmates from surrounding years are also invited to attend.

Before the 1 p.m. football game, a full day of Homecoming activities is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 23. A Homecoming continental breakfast will be available for students and alumni in the Ouachita Commons from 8 to 10 a.m.

The fourth annual OcTiger Fest campus celebration will begin at 9 a.m. on Grant Plaza. OcTiger Fest, hosted by Ouachita’s Alumni Office, will feature various social clubs, athletic groups, academic departments and campus organizations to greet students and alumni. The U.S. Bank CubZone is geared especially toward children and will be supervised by Ouachita student volunteers, coordinated by Ouachita’s Campus Activity Board.

The Homecoming football game against Valdosta State will be preceded by the introduction of the Homecoming queen and her court at 12:30 p.m., followed by kickoff at 1 p.m. at A.U. Williams Field.

Following the game, alumni from the 1980s are invited to attend the Totally Gnarly 80s After-Party in the Walker Conference Center. After the 5 p.m. Tiger Tunes show, the community is invited to attend the second annual Mega-Mix Fajita Grill, hosted by Sodexo, from 6-8:30 p.m.

The online Signal will present a live simulcast of the 8:30 p.m. finale of Tiger Tunes. The simulcast will include behind-the-scenes interviews with the cast and production team in addition to the show itself. The live webcast can be viewed at www.obusignal.com.

For more information about the week’s activities, including registration and ticketing, visit www.obualumni.org or contact Lauren Land at [email protected] or (870) 245-5111.

By Breanne Goodrum