Alumni Weekend

Questions? Email alumni@hope.edu 

We are looking forward to recognizing the following milestone class years as part of Alumni Weekend 2022:

• The 50 Year Circle: 1969 and earlier
• 50th Reunion: Class of 1972
• 40th Reunion: Class of 1982
• 30th Reunion: 1992

More details will be published here as they become available. Here's a recap of the virtual events from Alumni Weekend 2021:

Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient Webinars

Lara Plewka ’98 MacGregor: “Turning Heartbreak into Hope”

At the age of 30, seven months pregnant and a successful associate vice president, Lara MacGregor was diagnosed with cancer. Fourteen years later, Lara is still fighting Stage IV Metastatic breast cancer after seven years of remission. Lara knows heartbreak — but she also knows hope. In 2012, she founded Hope Scarves, an organization that allows the sharing of stories and scarves among women who are fighting cancer. The Hope Scarves collection, which is constantly evolving, now contains over 15,000 scarves and 1,200 stories. Her organization has raised and donated hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to breast cancer research and Lara has also become a popular blogger, podcast host and speaker. Learn how Lara has faced her personal health heartbreak with a commitment to spreading hope.

Deborah Heydenburg ’87 Fuller: “From Plants to Patients: A Scientist’s Journey from Hope to Healing”

In a world that has had all eyes on vaccine development in the past year, Dr. Deb Fuller has been wearing many different hats, including professor of microbiology at the University of Washington, co-founder and chief technology officer of Orlance, Inc, and division chief and core scientist at the Washington National Primate Research Center in the AIDS division. In short, she has been on quite a journey from her first experiment on plant cells at Hope College to her current work developing vaccines to fight the spread of disease in humans. This virtual talk is equal parts science, Q&A and anecdotes about Dr. Fuller’s personal and highly circuitous career path.

Fireside Chat with Doc Hemenway

What if books could provide a chance to try another life you could have lived? To see how things would be if you had made other choices? Would you have done anything different? Join iconic Hope Professor Dr. Stephen Hemenway for this interactive chat, based on Hope’s first online book club selection "The Midnight Library." No need to have read the book to enjoy this event about the choices that go into a life well lived!

Lunch and Learn featuring Dr. Fred Johnson III — “January 6, 2021: Biopsying America's Democracy & the Way Forward”

On January 6, 2021, the insurrectionist mob that stormed the United States Congress revealed dangerous, festering weaknesses within America’s democracy. Driven by rage and blinded by conspiracy theories, the mob’s actions proved that an immediate examination was necessary to fully grasp the cancer within the body politic. This presentation will assess extent of the damage and discuss corrective actions to confront and neutralize this clear and present danger.