A picnic on Windmill Island and home football and soccer games will be among the features of the 44th annual Community Day on Saturday, Sept. 12.
The picnic will run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Persons purchasing tickets in advance will also receive a free ticket for admission to Windmill Island from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. that day, as well as a ticket for the Hope College football game with Carthage College of Kenosha, Wis., at Holland Municipal Stadium, which begins at 1:30 p.m.
The picnic will consist of bratwurst, hamburger, sliced turkey breast, vegetarian croissants, salads, chips, cookies, beverages and other picnic fare. Live music will be provided throughout the picnic by the Holland American Legion Band.
The Holland High School marching band will be playing at the game.
Community Day is scheduled in celebration of the long-standing relationship between Holland residents and the faculty, students and staff of Hope College. The event debuted in October 1966 as a Community Ox Roast, held in conjunction with the Hope College centennial celebration. Like the first event, which was the idea of former mayor Nelson Bosman, subsequent Community Days have provided an opportunity for Holland and Hope to come together.
In addition to the island, picnic and football, the day will feature two home soccer games at Buys Athletic Fields, located on 11th Street at Fairbanks Avenue. The women's team will play Denison University of Granville, Ohio, at noon, and the men will play Wheaton College of Wheaton, Ill., at 2 p.m. Admission to both games is free.
Also on campus, the gallery of the De Pree Art Center will be featuring an exhibition of recent sculpture and drawings by Michael Ferris. The exhibition is running Friday, Aug. 21 through Friday, Sept. 18. The De Pree Art Center is located on Columbia Avenue at 12th Street, and the gallery is open Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission to the gallery is free.
Tickets for Community Day, which include the picnic, football game and admission to WindmillIsland, cost $7.50 for regular admission and $4 for children age five to 11, with admission free for children under five.
Advance tickets for Community Day may be purchased at the DeVos Fieldhouse, 222 Fairbanks Ave., weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets will also be sold at the picnic on the day of the event. Additional information may be obtained by calling the college's Office of Public and Community Relations at (616) 395-7860 or online at the college's Web site at www.hope.edu.
In the event of rain, the picnic will be moved to the dining room of Phelps Hall, located on the Hope College campus at 154 E. 10th St., on Columbia Avenue at 10th Street. If the picnic is moved inside, announcements will be made online at www.hope.edu and on area radio stations.