FHU Family to Celebrate Homecoming Week October 31 - November 7
Freed-Hardeman University alumni and friends are invited to return to campus homecoming weekend, Nov. 5-7, 2021, topping off a week of student activities that will begin Oct. 31, 2021. Following the necessary cancelation of 2020’s in-person gathering, organizers have chosen the theme “Celebrate Me Home” to welcome the FHU family back to campus for the annual event.
Highlighted by the coronation of the FHU Homecoming King and Queen Saturday, Nov. 6, at halftime of the women’s basketball game, the week also will feature reunions for the classes of 1980, 1981, 1990, 1991 and 2021. Additionally, FHU’s newest alumni, members of the class of 2021, are invited to a first-time event - a zero-year reunion. Director of Alumni Engagement Chris Ramey said, "We don't want our newest alumni to wait five years for their first class reunion to take place! We know they're ready to see each other now, and we want to offer them the opportunity to reunite a few months after graduation."
Students will take part in a variety of homecoming activities beginning Oct. 31, including special chapel presentations. John Smith (‘60) will speak Monday and Tuesday, a preview of the homecoming play (“The Burnt Part Boys”) is set for Wednesday, and the homecoming court will be presented to the student body Thursday. Friday’s ALUMination Day will feature Tony Miller (’92), senior director of financial planning and analysis for CoreCivic. On ALUMination Day, FHU alumni from a variety of professions will share their career and life experiences with current students. Throughout the week, clubs will compete in traditional activities, including the painting of the dining hall windows, powder puff football and basketball.
“The Burnt Part Boys” will open Thursday, Nov. 4, at 7:00pm in Loyd Auditorium. Additional performances are scheduled for Friday, Nov. 5, at 7:00pm and Saturday, Nov. 6, at 2:00pm. Set in rural West Virginia in the early 1960s, the musical chronicles the story of two teenage brothers who, along with friends, journey to the coal mine that took their father’s life. Dinner and the show are offered Friday evening, Nov. 5, with the dinner being held in the Brown-Kopel Business Center lobby at 5:00pm. The $40 ticket includes dinner and the performance. FHU Theatre alumni will reunite onstage following Friday’s performance.
Food trucks will take over Heritage Commons Friday, Nov. 5, to serve students and guests. Two concerts are on tap for Friday evening. John Rush, known as “the Human iPod,” will perform at 5:30pm in Heritage Commons. Popular 1980s student band Petra is planned for Friday at 7:00pm in Chapel Hall. A dessert and coffee reception for the class of 1980-81 will follow at 9:00pm There is no charge to attend the reception, but an RSVP is required.
Activities Saturday, Nov. 6, will begin at 11:00am with a volleyball game in Brewer Sports Center and a Chorale concert in Draughon Center for the Performing Arts.
Members of Phi Kappa Alpha during the 1980s are invited to a reunion luncheon Saturday at 11:30am at the Tucker Family Dining Hall at Mid-South Youth Camp. Tickets are required.
The annual Legacy Student Pinning Ceremony will be conducted at 1:00pm in Chapel Hall. Students whose parents or grandparents are FHU alumni will take part in a special ceremony, and those parents and grandparents are invited to participate, too.
Following the Lion Walk and tailgating, the Lady Lion basketball team will take on Blue Mountain College at 2:00pm in Brewer Sports Center. The Lions will face Harris-Stowe State College at 4:00pm. Social clubs will compete for the Spirit Trophy throughout the games.
The FHU Sports Hall of Fame will induct three new members with a ceremony and dinner Saturday evening. Honorees include Fernanda Ferreira, Contagem, Brazil; Robert Prieto, Springfield, Missouri; and Kamara Trice, Henderson, Tennessee. Ferreira was a three-time All-American middle blocker on the FHU volleyball team from 2008-12. She is an administrator for a lighting and energy company and is pursuing an MBA. Prieto came to FHU from Caracas, Venezuela. He was a four-time all-conference shortstop who is listed as a top ten performer in multiple categories. He lives in Springfield, Missouri, where he is a mortgage loan officer. Trice, a Chester County native, pitched and played third base for the Lady Lion softball team. She is listed first all-time in six categories, including career hits, slugging percentage and RBIs. In 2015, she led the Lady Lions to their first national tournament appearance. Currently, Trice is a registered nurse in Jackson, Tennessee.
The day’s events will conclude with congregational singing in Chapel Hall at 7:30pm. Homecoming week will close Sunday morning, Nov. 7, with a worship service at 9:00am in Loyd Auditorium. FHU President David R. Shannon will speak.
Tickets to intercollegiate athletic events, including the FHU Sports Hall of Fame dinner, may be purchased at GoFHULions.com. Other Homecoming event tickets are available at FHUTickets.com.
In conjunction with homecoming, R.U.S.H. (Reaching Unlimited Spiritual Heights) is also planned for Saturday, Nov. 6. The youth rally for high school students will also focus on the theme “Celebrate Me Home” by exploring the concept of spiritual exiles returning home. In addition to the typical R.U.S.H. classes, attendees will participate in select homecoming activities. Attendance for this event will be capped at 500, and students must register to attend. Additional information is available at fhu.edu/rush.