One new event will highlight this year's schedule. In cooperation with the West Virginia Strawberry Festival Autumn Classic, West Virginia Wesleyan College's Homecoming celebration will include a parade on Saturday, October 22. The event, sponsored by both organizations will include Wesleyan's regionally renowned jazz ensemble, Athletic Hall of Fame winners, alumni award winners, the Homecoming King and Queen nominees, several area high school marching bands, and the "Pride of West Virginia," the West Virginia University Marching Band.

"We are excited that we will be able to once again offer to the Buckhannon community a wonderful homecoming parade," remarked Tim Channell '03, Wesleyan's alumni relations director. "The collaboration of the Wesleyan community and the Strawberry Festival will make for an enjoyable addition to our Homecoming festivities for our students, faculty, staff, and alumni." The selected parade route will begin at 10:45 a.m. at College Avenue, continue down Kanawha Street onto Main Street and end at East Main Street.

Activities for alumni, students, and the Wesleyan community will abound over the three-day period. For alumni, the festivities begin on Friday with the Founders Day ceremony at 11 a.m. and then class reunion dinners that evening. The classes of 1960, 1965, 1970, and 1975 will celebrate their reunions at 7 p.m. with a reception and dinner at the Stonewall Resort at Weston (Exit 91 off of I-79), while the Class of 1980 will meet at Michael and Susan Aloi's home at 7 p.m. The Class of 1985 will meet at C. J. Maggies at 7 p.m. On Saturday, the classes of 1990, 1995 and 2000 will celebrate their reunion at the Young Alumni Reunion BBQ on the lawn in front of Haymond Hall.

A plethora of athletic events will take place this weekend for alumni to attend. The James K. "Johnny" Myers Memorial Golf Classic takes place Friday at 11:30 a.m. on the Arnold Palmer Signature Golf Course at Stonewall Resort. The Athletic Hall of Fame Induction and Bobcat Pride Reception will begin Saturday at 11:30 a.m. in the Benedum Campus Center social hall. Being inducted into the Hall of Fame this year are Marvin Culpepper '51, J. William (Bill) Grimes '63, Larry Rhodes '69 and the 1989 and 1990 men's soccer teams.

On the playing field Friday, the men's and women's cross country teams will compete in the Bobcat Classic at 4 p.m., the men's soccer team will play Tusculum College at 7 p.m. on the Wood Street Field, and the volleyball team will meet Shepherd University at 7 p.m. in Rockefeller Center. On Saturday, the football Bobcats will meet Shepherd University at 1 p.m. at Ross Field. The Homecoming king and queen will be crowned during halftime of the game. The women's soccer team will play the University of Charleston at 4 p.m. on the Wood Street Field.

The alumni banquet will be held Saturday night in the French A. See Dining Hall at 6:30 p.m. During the banquet, the College will honor the Alumni Achievement Awards winners, P. Darrell Neufer '84 and Chaplain Colonel James W. Daniels '71 MBA '90, the College Service Award winners, Michael J. Aloi '80 and Susan Miller Aloi '80, and the Wesleyan Extra Mile Award winner, Robert J. Wallace.

Several other activities have been planned for Homecoming weekend. For more information about Homecoming weekend, please contact the Alumni Relations Office at alumni@wvwc.edu or call (304) 473-8509, or visit the Homecoming link on the website at http://www.wvwc.edu/alu/homecoming05.asp

Dr. John C. Wright to Speak at Founders Day

Dr. John C. Wright will be the featured speaker during the College's Founders Day Convocation on Friday, October 21 in Wesley Chapel at 11 a.m.

Dr. Wright '48 is a former student and professor at West Virginia Wesleyan College. His time here as a student was interrupted with a tour of the Navy during World War II. He was a member of the Kappa Alpha fraternity, and also a member of the Benzene Ring, the chemistry honor society. As a professor, he spent eight years at Wesleyan (1957-1965) teaching chemistry.

He has held numerous leadership roles with the National Science Foundation, Northern Arizona University, West Virginia University, and as President of the University of Alabama at Huntsville.

The Founders Day Convocation is a day of giving thanks and recognition to the College. It is a day to renew allegiances of the past and at the same time to greet the faces of the future. Founders Day coincides with the College's Homecoming Weekend (October 21-23), and will be one of many events occurring over the three-day period.