14C
HOMECOMING
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 1. 2007
FOOD
Pancakes to precede parade
Come for the breakfast, stay for the celebration
BY ALEX PARKER
Saturday's pancake breakfast in front of Stauffer-Flint Hall might be the simplest way to garner points in this year's homecoming competition.
All students have to do is purchase a ticket, show up and eat some pancakes. Student groups can receive one point per person, with a maximum of 100 points possible.
"It's a good place to mingle with other Jayhawk fans before the game."
John Larance, Houston senior,
said he was looking forward to the
feast, which runs from 8 a.m. to 11
a.m. He was already planning on
being on campus at 7:30 a.m.
to complete the Theta Chi fraternity's
Homecoming Parade float.
JAY BENEDICT Roseland junior
Larance said he chatted with an alumnus from the class of 1957 at last year's pancake breakfast.
was a good way to begin the last day of Homecoming Week and warm the bellies of Jayhawk fans preparing to brave the November temperatures.
"I should be hungry by the time we get the float up there" he said.
"It's just a great thing to get out and go to it." Anderson said. "You know you're tired, you're cold. That's what it's all about. That's when you know [Homecoming] is here."
Special events co-chair
Trey Annion
Wichita junior
said the pancake breakfast
It's also a way to grab coveted seats along Jayhawk Boulevard for the 9:30 a.m. parade. Instead of jostling for a position, Anderson suggested that people should arrive early for breakfast and stake out a position to watch the parade.
Special events co-chair Jay Benedict, Roseland junior, said the breakfast was a great way to cap off the week.
"It's good intermingling. It's a good opportunity to watch the parade. It's a good place to mingle with other Jayhawk fans before the game." Benedict said.
Tickets for the pancake breakfast are $5 and can be purchased at the Homecoming Steering Committee's booth on Wescoe Beach from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. all week. Tickets can also be purchased at the event. There will be a sign-in sheet for student groups to register for points.
Edited by Luke Morris
Sarah Leonard/KANSAN
The homecoming pancake feed will be held from 8 to 11 Saturday morning. Tickets cost $5 and the Homecoming Steering Committee will be selling tickets on Wescoe Beach all week. The Homecoming Parade will follow the pancakes.
The Alumni Association has various ways to keep graduates — near and far — aware of the weekend. Alderdice said that the Homecoming events were strongly promoted on the association's Web site and in its magazine.
Homecoming is not only designed to demonstrate the football team's superiority, flaunt floats down Jayhawk Boulevard or even win the title of corndog eating champion. Jennifer Alderdice, director of student programs at the Alumni Association and adviser to the Homecoming and Steering Committee, said the purpose of Homecoming was to reconnect alumni to their alma mater.
The Alumni Association also targets former students in a more specific fashion. Alderdice said the K-club, which consists of athletic alumni, was sent pamphlets encouraging alumni to not only revist the University, but to participate in the Spirit Sprint, a 5k run around campus that benefits the Douglas County United Way program. The Alumni Association even sends mail to the Homecoming Queens, who were designated until 1978, to encourage their return to the University.
Marsh said that because Nebraska's football team has very rarely come to Lawrence as an underdog, he thinks the intensity of the event would encourage more alumni to show their support.
"Lots of alumni call from all over asking about events and statistics," Marsh said. "While that doesn't necessarily equate to increasing numbers of alumni coming to campus, we feel confident that the number is not decreasing."
Though most career paths take students beyond the limits of Lawrence, the KU Alumni Association wants to bring thousands of jayhawks back to Lawrence on Homecoming weekend to reflect on their foundations.
Curtis Marsh, a 1994 graduate and director of student information, said his loyalty to the University began with great experiences as an undergraduate student. He also said that alumni played a significant role at the University for the same reasons they did at other universities.
"Aulni are important in maintaining the value of your degree," she said. "[The University is] only as strong as our alumni. Your degree is strengthened by the efforts of the Alumni Association."
COMING HOME
Alumni return to KU for festivities
"They are the primary donors to their university's endowment, and serve as an extension of the student community by helping with recruiting great new students and providing employment for recent graduates." Marsh said.
BY JORDAN SCHERER
—Edited by Chris Beattie