Mackenzie Thomas
Staff Writer
A time for students of the past, present and future to gather together to create a sense of community, the University of Wyoming Homecoming has been a tradition for nearly 97 years. Though it started out as just a reunion for graduated students, Wyoming’s Homecoming has grown into a full-blown celebration of Poke Pride.
Homecoming has been a tradition in the United States since the early 1900s, and it has continued to be a well established celebration of college pride since then. Wyoming, however, was ahead of the curve when it came to the idea of Homecoming.
In Mar. 1895, the University of Wyoming Alumni Association (UWAA) was established. The UWAA worked towards creating a sense of community amongst students who had already graduated from the university. To work towards this objective, the UWAA hosted their first alumni reunion in the summer of 1895.
“Homecoming really identifies the one time a year that those who cannot return often can come back and bump into other alumni and current or retired faculty. Homecoming is a time for making plans to come back and recconnect,” Keener Fry, the executive director of the UWAA, said.
The summer gathering of alumni involved music, baccalaureate ceremonies, alumni association meetings, and even a ball. This event also included an opportunity for alumni to reconnect with their college friends via small group gatherings and an alumni banquet. After many years of summer reunions, the UWAA stepped up their game in 1922 with the first official Wyoming Homecoming.
Samuel H. Knight, a Wyoming alumni and geology professor at the university, was the president of the UWAA from 1921-1924. In Oct. of 1922, Knight worked along with the university community to establish the first official Wyoming Homecoming.
Knight, who was also heavily involved with the university’s athletic committee, moved the summer alumni reunions to the fall in order to center the celebrations around a football game. Originally, football games were played in Prexy’s Pasture, but Knight was able to utilize his own funding and his community connection to use Corbett field as the new football field. Knight gathered help from current and returning students in order to build bleachers for the first homecoming game.
Along with the football game, activities such as class reunions, open houses, dances, and a parade became traditions surrounding homecoming early on in the establishment of the event. Today, these traditions and more are celebrated by alumni and current students alike.
“I would say, from a campus and student perspective, that the Homecoming Sing has been a favorite since the 1940s,” said Fry.
The Homecoming Sing is a tradition for current students to participate in, but it also allows for alumni to get involved in a joyful reunion event.
Alongside the Homecoming Sing, traditions like Big Event have also been great opportunities for student involvement. Created in 2013, the Big Event focuses on giving back to the Laramie community by providing service opportunities for current students. There is also the Tri-Hop Pancake Breakfast, a 24 hour long pancake breakfast put on by Tri-Delta, which benefits the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Fry and the UWAA typically host thousands of alumni that come back specifically for homecoming by coordinating the homecoming parade and events like the alumni dinner.
Overall, the UW’s Homecoming aims to create a sense of community by creating events for alumni, current students and the Laramie community to get involved with. One of the main focuses of Wyoming Homecoming is what Fry describes as “Brown and Gold Pride”, in which alumni are able to reminisce about their education, faculty and college experiences.
“Alumni come back to focus on tradition, but enjoy looking at the innovation surrounding the University as it moves forward,” said Fry.
Fry said the alumni enjoy looking at the diversity and opportunity the campus provides as UW grows and expands. Homecoming provides a time in which alumni can reminisce, but can also see the future of the school all at once.
Though the football game and the homecoming parade are typically the largest celebrations involved with homecoming, traditions such as the Homecoming Sing and the Big Event will continue to be passed on to future students.
Building community one tradition at a time, the UW’s Homecoming celebrations will continue this weekend with Tri-Delta Pancake Breakfast, Homecoming Parade, and the football game against New Mexico tomorrow.
