October 2004 Development Newsletter

Article Body: What a difference a year makes!

After heavy rains soaked the Homecoming crowd of 2003 this time around about the only thing Gracelanders were drenched with was bountiful warm Sunshine! The weather was absolutely gorgeous!

The buzz around campus the past 2 weeks has been that Homecoming 2004 will go down as one of the best in school history.

For starters and thanks to the Class gifts of '53 and '78 brand new spiffy marquee signs helped those coming back to the hill find their way a heck of a lot easier around campus. The project was completed just a few days before the weekend got underway.
Many saw the brand new Helene Center for The Visual Arts for the first time and about 700 took in the Sunday morning dedication service. Kelly Hall was a cozy place but the Helene Center is now clearly one of the best of its kind in the Midwest.

Larry Fairchild, Class of '74, headed up the Alumni College presentations on Homecoming Friday. Fairchild was a star halfback for the YellowJackets back in the day and has worked for the CIA the past 29 years.

Speaking of Football "WHAT A GAME" against Evangel University. Graceland set a school record for points scored winning 73-48 and the Homecoming magic didn't stop there. The Women's soccer team, currently ranked 8th in the nation, won as did the Men's soccer and Women's volleyball teams.

The pre-game tailgate BBQ lunch was another smashing success and this year a very tasty twist. For dessert fans were treated to free ice cream cups served in handsome Graceland mugs. It was all part of the official kickoff party under a huge tent for the public phase of the Graceland Forever Fundraising Campaign. The 5 year goal? To raise $27 million dollars with $17 million earmarked for the building of a new Science and Technology Center. Yes another Center for Excellence is on the way!

Make plans now for Homecoming 2005. The Farmers Almanac is predicting another YellowJacket kind of a weekend!
Event Date: 1/15/2005 2:30 PM