Gen. James D. Thurman, an East Central University alumnus who commands the U.S. Army Forces Command (FORSCOM) at Fort McPherson, Ga., the army's largest command, and his wife, Dee, will be ECU's Aloha Homecoming parade marshals on Saturday [OCT. 9].
The four-star general also will speak at a veteran appreciation ceremony Saturday morning and participate in the coin toss before the football game begins at 6 p.m.
Fireworks, an art fair and an ECU Theatre production are planned along with traditional events during the week-long Homecoming celebration.
Monday
As part of the Aloha Homecoming theme, Hawaiian leis, lemonade and Homecoming T-shirts will be available from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday [OCT. 4] on the Danley Hall lawn. T-shirts are $10 and will be on sale at different times throughout the week in the Bill S. Cole University Center.
The annual banner contest will start at 2 p.m. Monday in the University Center.
Tuesday
The School of Business Alumni Luncheon will begin at noon Tuesday [OCT. 5] in the Stanley Wagner Ballroom in the Memorial Student Union. The cost is $12 at the door. For more information, contact Jordan Morris at 580-559-5274.
Wednesday
ECU students will vote for Homecoming king and queen from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday [OCT. 6] at the University Center.
Thursday
Neil Simon's comic fable "Fools" will open Thursday in the Chalmers Herman Theatre in the Hallie Brown Ford Fine Arts Center. Curtain times are 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 3 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $5 for adults and $4 for senior citizens and non-ECU students. Alumni will receive a $1 discount. ECU students, faculty and staff will be admitted free with valid ID cards.
Friday
The annual golf scramble will be held Friday at Oak Hills Golf & Country Club in Ada. Thursday [OCT. 7] is the deadline to register online at http://alumni.ecok.edu/. Four-person teams can enter, or the Alumni Association can place individuals in teams. The entry fee is $100 per person, and prizes will be awarded to winning teams.
Information about sponsorship packages, a lunch, registration and the tee off time is included on the website.
A luau, pep rally and T-shirt sale will be held from 6 to 7 p.m. on the green (west of the University Center). Students can use their meal plan for the luau. The cost is $5 for others.
Saturday
Saturday will be filled with events. The 5K Tiger Run will begin at 8 a.m. at Wintersmith Park. Friday is the deadline to register online at http://alumni.ecok.edu/. Entry fees are $25 for individuals and $60 for teams of five to eight runners. Division winners and overall winners will receive medals. For more information, call the ECU Alumni Office at 580-559-5651.
Approximately 30 vendors will offer their wares at the Funky Fun Art Fair from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Centennial Plaza outside the fine arts center. Several ECU clubs and non-profit organizations also will have booths. Live music, art demonstrations, face painting, a caricature artist and a moon bounce are planned.
The Golden Tiger Brunch will honor ECU alumni who graduated in 1960 or more than 50 years ago. It will begin at 10 a.m. in the Wagner Ballroom in the Memorial Student Union.
Gen. Thurman will speak briefly with students in the Oklahoma Army National Guard's GOLD program before giving the keynote address at a veteran appreciation ceremony at 11 a.m. on the Crabtree Honor Plaza. He will be introduced by Maj. Gen. Myles L. Deering, the adjutant general of Oklahoma and a graduate of Ada High School. Thurman will pay tribute to Vietnam veterans, and a flag that flew over the U.S. Pentagon during the Vietnam War will be raised on the plaza.
Following the ceremony, attendees will be invited to a buffet luncheon in the Hallie Brown Ford Fine Arts Center sponsored by Vision Bank.
Next, the Thurmans will lead the Homecoming parade down Main Street at 1 p.m. Floats, cars and walking groups will follow the Aloha Homecoming theme.
Several alumni groups have planned activities during the day. The Physics Department will host an open house from 10 to 11 a.m. The Athletic Alumni Association will meet at 11 a.m. in Room 213 of Kerr Activities Center, and band alumni will meet in the band room of the fine arts center at 2 p.m. An alumni baseball game will begin at 2 p.m. at the baseball field.
Open houses will be hosted from 2 to 3 p.m. by the Mathematics, Environmental Health Science, and Cartography and Geography Departments, and from 2 to 4 p.m. by the Honors Program in Room 159 of Faust Hall.
The final performance of "Fools" will be at 3 p.m. in the Chalmers Herman Theatre in the fine arts center.
The Mayhue Tennis Courts, which were resurfaced last summer, will be dedicated at 3:30 p.m.
ECU's College of Health & Sciences will host a Homecoming Tailgate from 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday north of the Norris Field parking lot.
The Homecoming king and queen will be announced during a coronation ceremony at 5:30 p.m. at Norris Field.
About 5:50 p.m. the national anthem will be performed and Thurman will be introduced. A flyover by the Oklahoma Air National Guard will honor Thurman shortly before the 6 p.m. kickoff of the football game. ECU President John Hargrave, Thurman and Deering will toss the coin to get the game underway between ECU and the University of the Incarnate Word.
A fireworks show will begin immediately after the football game.
Alumni also can attend a La Fragua Reunion at 9 p.m. at the Elks Lodge. Zoom City will perform and jam sessions will feature musicians who played at the former club during the 1970s.
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