Homecoming... need I say anything more!

Well, Homecoming was last week and I am still recovering from all of the events that took place. I was a part of the Student Homecoming Organization (SHO); the purpose of SHO is to provide students the opportunity to enjoy homecoming. Within the past couple of years, students were stuck on campus, doing school work instead of enjoying the festivities, which were mainly set up for alumni. SHO promotes awareness of activities that students can get involved in to celebrate the spirit of Homecoming.
Let me give you a rundown of all of the different events that took place last year that I was a part of:

Monday: Pie a Professor
All of the money went to Delaware area school for equipment such as parts for the school's AV center and for the classroom in general. The event was really pie a interim president or a public safety officer. If for some reason, you had or have an agenda with one of these people then you can oblige them with a pie to the face. Honestly, it was funny seeing the reaction on people's faces when these people got pied. I know some people were like, "Take that, Officer Mickens!" I liked the event and I believe the reaction on people was priceless. The day was also aptly named Pajama Day. Like people on campus don't arrive to class in their pajamas enough (especially after a long trip or a string of events that goes into 2-3 in the morning).

Tuesday: Rockstar/Celebrity Day
Truthfully, I didn't heavily promote this day. People dressed up and there are not much commotion about it. Therefore, I probably don't need to explain any further.

Wednesday: Hawaiian Day/Luau
This is the event that I chose to help out with. The luau was a promotion to get people really juiced for Friday. This event was the appetizer for the entree, so to speak. I arrived early to get equipment and other supplies to set the mood. Student organizations on campus had to bake a chocolate dessert and people on the committee judged the food. In addition to this, the homecoming court was formally introduced and they leied people who walked in the Student Center. I got leied a couple of times- it was fun. The winner of the dessert contest was something that looked and tasted like a pizza except that it had a chocolate dessert feel to it. The desserts were good.

Thursday: Prince/Princess Day
Nothing was really eventful on this day- I have no report except the hustle and bustle of classes wearing on me.

Friday: Bonfire/Homecoming Soccer Game vs. Wittenberg
This was my favorite part of Homecoming last year and this year. This is the best possible way to meet up with friends, bond with some people with you may not have touched bases with in a while, or to relax watching the bonfire outside and the big screen television inside. Obviously, there were a lot of people showing up. The soccer was a big help to our cause. People would either see the fire on their way to the fire and see what it is about or people would be returning from the soccer game and look for their friends in that area. There was dee jays from Alpha Sigma Phi, Chris Drover and Jerome Bucceri, driving the mood of the bonfire as well as hot dogs and hamburgers for people to eat while enjoying the music and the bonfire. My main job at the Bonfire was to help set up and tear down and to distribute the Homecoming t-shirts. There were so many people requesting t-shirts. I did that for about 90 minutes before I left for the soccer game. I had to go support the Men's Soccer team because there is only one Homecoming soccer game for men. The soccer game was exhilarating and I knew that the men's soccer team were going to win hands down. There were too many fans on our side for us to lose- plus the men's soccer team is just that good. GO BISHOPS!!! After the soccer game, I went to some parties and went to bed a satisfied customer.

Saturday: Pumpkin Run/Black Family Weekend/Homecoming Football Game/Costume Party

Okay. I was probably missing about a third of the events as Saturday is always packed with events. Somehow, I managed to get about two hours of studying in as well. I guess you can say I am a multi-tasker in a way. At 8 in the morning, I jogged over to Selby Stadium to prepare for the Pumpkin Run. Unfortunately for me, I have conditioned myself to adequately prepare for the 5K. I like running and jogging on a new path so I was confident and ready to take it on. I did okay- under 30 minutes- not bad for a guy who has not conditioned in a while. I saw teachers, students, and members of my church running in it so I was happy to see good crowd participation from all aspects of life and occupations.
After getting some fruit, I headed back to my house to shower and change for the Black Family Weekend brunch. The guest speaker was Dr. Naima Johnston, '93. She was also the speaker for the Leadership Conference for Minority Student Orientation for GLCA schools back in August. I saw many families and alumni back for the festivities. Gospelyres sung and Dr. Johnston gave us inspiring words of wisdom to take back to the OWU community. The brunch wasn't bad either.
The program ended around 1 p.m. I headed directly over to see the first set of volleyball, who played Allegheny. I saw the OWU Volleyball team crush their rivals and I had to leave because I wanted to see the announcement of the Homecoming court and if the OWU football were winning against Allegheny. I was delicated to see they were. I voted for people for the Homecoming Court- some of the choices for the court that I selected got the nomination and others didn't. Still, I was happy to see that the stadium was filled to capacity and that people were having a good time. By the way, all of our teams won their matches. Everyone was so stoked after the Football game. If only I had time to breathe last Saturday!
I saw the Lacrosse team in action- more or less in practice with the alumni at 4 p.m. Then I attended the Music department's faculty gala at 5 p.m. in which I got to see my professor, Mr. Hiester in performance mode. I was thrilled to see him perform and even more so my friends that were in attendance. I had to leave near the end of the program around 6 p.m. and I just got the tip of the Minifest Program hosted by Rafiki Wa Afrika. I saw the performance last year so I had an idea of what would be happening. Well, at least I got to eat some of the delicacies.
I went to another lecture at 7:30 p.m. hosted by the Office of Minority Student Affairs. The host: Bakari Kitwana- former editor of the Source magazine. Mr. Kitwana is a hip-hop analyst who studies the role of hip-hop on society. The lecture was about two and a half hours long but the subject was pretty interesting. One of the alumni received a book from Mr. Kitwana but decided against having it. Being at the right place and the right time, I accepted Mr. Kitwana's book: The Hip-Hop Generation: Young Blacks and the Crisis in African-American Culture. Once again, I was ecstatic about the day and I knew that I needed to do more work before I could enjoy the day further.
I did some readings for class on Monday and I put on my costume for the party that was hosted by my fraternity. The house was packed with people and their personas- I had a very good time as I was able to chill out and relax before preparing for church on Sunday.
This concludes my report for Homecoming 2007. I think the events were awesome and I can't wait until this time next year. Seeing the alumni back for a day made my day and the festivities created a lot of attention and buzz amongst everyone. I am so proud of all of the members of the Student Homecoming Organization because you know what... we kicked butt this year. Now that Homecoming is over and exams are soon approaching, I got to get moving on studying and mentally prepared for this next phase in my academic life.



Hustling,
Hasani Wheat
Class of '10