THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2009
2C HOMECOMING
Table of contents
Greek...3
Alumni...3
Charity...5
ExCEL...5
Baby Jay...6
Big Jay...7
Hippies...8
Timeline...9
Floats...10
Events...10
Columns...11
ISU vs. KU...12
Chancellor... 13
Generations...14
First...14
Faculty...15
A musical blast from years past
PERFORMANCE
Alumni band will join current members for halftime show
BY SHAUNA BLACKMON
sblackmon@kansan.com
Those watching the homecoming halftime show. this Saturday may notice something special about the performance of the KU marching band.
For the past 37 years, the University has incorporated
The tradition started very informally when a group of former band members
band members young and old into the homecoming halftime show by means of the KU alumni band.
to rekindle its love for band, KU fight songs and, of course, watching the football team win.
got together and decided they wanted a way to participate in the action again.
The morning of the game, all of the KU band members, past and present, get together to practice a few times before the big show.
Ever since, this group of between 150 and 200 alumni has gotten together every year
"A lot of the alumni still play; some of them play only once a year."
This is the first time this group will play together and
THOMAS STIDHAM Associate director of bands
might be the first time many of the alumni band members have seen the music in years.
Stidham, associate director of bands, said.
"A lot of the alumni still play; some of them play only once a year, just at that event!" Thomas
James Carder, Olathe junior, has been a member of the Marching Jayhawks for three years and has been playing the
trombone for 11.
"My favorite part of play."
"My favorite pa ing with the alumni band is that the tradition doesn't leave when the alumni graduate," Carder said. "They all came here and played for a reason, and just because they left KU didn't mean they had to stop playing completely."
The marching band will leave a space in the center for the alumni band, the two will separate and the alumni band will play "Wagner Fanfare" and "Prud Mary", Stidham said.
Then they will merge back with the marching band and everyone will play a few songs together.
Carter played with the alumni band three years ago and said while the experience was fun, some of the veterans knew different arrangements of the same songs they play now, so there was some con-
"I am looking forward to marching alongside all the veterans ..."
JAMES CARDER KU band member
problem.
C a r d e r and Stidham agreed, however, that the veterans were great enough players that discrepancies usually weren't much of a
"I am looking forward to marching alongside all the veterans that helped make the program what it is today." Carder said. "I'm sure they are looking forward to it too because they only get a chance to come back once a year and relive what it is to be on the field in Memorial Stadium on game day in Lawrence."
Edited by Jonathan Hermes
Note from the editor
I was born and bred a Jayhawk. My dad graduated from the University in the '70s, and my mother, despite growing up in Missouri, is an intensely loyal KU fan. When I was younger, my family would make frequent weekend trips into Lawrence, especially when my cousin attended the University in the late '90s. We enjoyed walking on campus, eating on Massachusetts Street, visiting the Natural History Museum and going to the mall that used to be by the Kansas River.
Those early experiences left me with very positive impressions, and when I started at the University last fall, it was almost like coming home. I had fun
reliving childhood memories and making new ones, and I fell more in love with the people, opportunities and traditions that make the University so special. I spent this past summer in Lenexa, eagerly counting down the days until I could return "home" to Lawrence, and I was overjoyed when move-in day finally arrived in mid-August.
This week, alumni get to experience that same joy when they return to their alma mater for homecoming festivities. Alumni also once called Lawrence home and are largely responsible for the University's continued excellence. Not only did they start and shape traditions as students, they continue to support the University with donations to the Kansas University Endowment Association.
In this special section, readers will find information about the annual events and traditions that undoubtedly helped make alumni's time at the University memorable. From the float parade and pancake feed on the lawn of Stauffer-Flint Hall, to Chalk n'
Rock and Jayhawk Jingles, this week is sure to have an event for everyone. Readers will also encounter stories about members of the KU community, including first generation Jayhawks and alumni that returned as faculty, and will get a special look at our mascots, Big Jay and Baby Jay.
As Lawrence fills with alumni this weekend in anticipation of the Iowa State matchup on Saturday, I encourage students to look around and witness what life looks like after walking down the hill. I expect that they'll find that while times and people may change, Jayhawk pride and excitement at coming home to Lawrence never will.
credits
Publisher
Editor-in-chief
Managing Editor
The University Daily Kansan Brenna Hawley Jennifer Torline
Special Sections Editor Design Chiefs
Dana Meredith
Nick Gerik
Kelly Stroda
Liz Schubauer
Brandy Entsminger
Arthur Hur
Melissa Johnson
Adam Mowder
Liz Schubauer
Copy Chiefs
Photo Editor Senior Photographer Business Manager Sales Manager Production
Weston White Ryan Waggoner Lauren Bloodgood Maria Korte Megan Gonzales Steph Waugh
The University Daily Kansan is the student newspaper of the University of Kansas. Homecoming 2009 is a special section.The first copy is paid for through the student activity fee.
Kansan Newsroom
Kansas Newsroom
111 Stauffer-Flint Hall
1435 Jayhawk Blvd.
Lawrence, KS 66045
(785) 864-4810
All contents, unless stated otherwise, $ \textcircled{c} $ 2009 The University Daily Kansan
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