Baylor Homecoming Celebration Set For Nov. 8-12
Baylor University will celebrate its 91st anniversary Homecoming Nov. 8-12, with a variety of entertaining and traditional events for its students, parents, alumni and faculty, sponsored by the Baylor Chamber of Commerce and the Alumni Association.
Traditional Baylor Homecoming events include a bonfire, football game, musical variety shows, numerous class reunion dinners and a parade that is believed to be the nation's oldest and largest collegiate parade. Also returning for an encore presentation after its debut last year is Baylor's groundbreaking high-definition documentary, A Most Significant Journey.
The first event of Homecoming weekend, the annual Freshman Mass Meeting, will begin at 10 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8, in Waco Hall, as upperclassmen pass down the Baylor traditions to new students. The event features the story of the Immortal Ten, 10 Baylor basketball players who were tragically killed in a 1927 train-bus collision while en route to Austin for a game against the University of Texas.
Baylor's on-campus dance, Extravaganza, will move from Saturday to Thursday this year, and is a free event. The dance for students, alumni, family and friends will be held on Fountain Mall from 8:00 to 11:00 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 9.
Pigskin Revue, another Baylor tradition, will showcase award-winning student acts from the 2000 All-University Sing, at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 9, 7 p.m. and 10:15 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10, and at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 11, in Waco Hall.
Reunion dinners begin at 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10, with the Class of 1950 Dinner in the Barfield Drawing Room of the Bill Daniel Student Center. Also at 5 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 10, the classes of 1912 through 1949 are invited to attend the Golden Diploma Dinner held at Harrington House Faculty Center.
The Reunion Buffet Dinner will be held on campus this year at the McLane Student Life Center on Saturday, Nov. 11, beginning at 5:30 p.m. The annual meeting of the Baylor Alumni Association, highlighting the W.R. White Awards and election of the alumni board representatives and officers, will be held immediately following the dinner at 6:30 p.m. Afterwards, individual class meetings will be held for the classes of '55, '60, '65, '70, '80, '85, '90 and '95. An Alumni Kids Carnival for alumni families with children age 5 or older will be held at the McLane Student Life Center, so parents may attend their reunion class meetings.
Baylor students, alumni and friends are invited to attend the encore presentation of A Most Significant Journey, Baylor's award-winning high-definition documentary. The 38-minute tribute will be shown hourly from 5 to 10 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10, at Jones Concert Hall in the Glennis McCrary Music Building. Admission is free.
Singspiration, an old-fashioned sing-along, will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday at First Baptist Church, Waco. Alumnus Ron Bowles will lead the singing, and the Baylor Religious Hour (BRH) Choir will perform.
Cabaret will celebrate the 20th anniversary of Baylor's renowned ShowTime! choir in a special performance at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10, in the Hooper-Schaefer Fine Arts Center.
Thousands of alumni and students will gather at 9 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10, on Fountain Mall for the annual pep rally and bonfire, featuring performances by the Baylor Golden Wave Band, cheerleaders and songleaders and speeches by Baylor football coaches and players.
Baylor's homecoming parade will begin its procession down Austin Avenue in downtown Waco at 8 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 11, and will reach Fifth Street on campus around 9 a.m. This year's parade includes floats, bands, club representatives, dignitaries, strolling entertainers and more.
Two hours before game time at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 11, Snickers Touchdown Alley will open at the south end of Floyd Casey Stadium for fans to enjoy music, organization tents, food and other activities.
The scheduled game time for the Baylor Bears to go head to head against the Missouri Tigers is 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 11, at Floyd Casey Stadium. Contact the athletic department ticket office at (254) 710-1000 or 1-800-BAYLOR-U, Ext. 7, for the latest information and to purchase tickets.
The special Homecoming worship service for alumni, students and their families will begin at 9 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 12, at Seventh and James Baptist Church. Dr. Mike Massar of Tyler will deliver the message.
For more information about Homecoming events or to purchase tickets, visit www.baylor.edu/~Homecoming or call the Bill Daniel Student Center ticket office at (254) 710-3210. Alumni event information is available at www.sicembears.com or by calling the Baylor Alumni Association at (254) 710-1121 or (800) BAYLOR-U, option 6.