Hope College will celebrate “One Big Weekend: Homecoming and Family Weekend” on Friday-Sunday, Oct. 11-13, with highlights including multiple events open to the public in addition to activities for alumni and the families of current students.
The weekend will include a variety of academic and arts events, athletic contests, a 5K run, a family-friendly cookout, recognition of 10 young alumni who are receiving awards from the Hope College Alumni Association, a “Hope on 8th Street” event, reunions for the classes of 1994 and 2009, and affinity events including the 100th anniversary celebration of the Sibylline sorority and the Emersonian fraternity, and the 185th anniversary celebration of the Fraternal Society.
The Biology Seminar Series will feature the address “Turning strains into strengths for understanding psychiatric disease” by Dr. Victor Cazares, a postdoctoral research fellow with the Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute at the University of Michigan, on Friday, Oct. 11, at 3 p.m. in room 1019 of the A. Paul Schaap Science Center. Admission is free.
The Engineering Seminar Series will feature the address “What is Fire Protection Engineering?” by 2017 Hope graduate Delany Seeburger of Reax Engineering Inc. of Berkeley, California, on Friday, October 11th, at 3 p.m. in room 102 of VanderWerf Hall. Admission is free.
The Chemistry Seminar Series will feature an address by Dr. Michaela TerAvest, an assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Michigan State University, on Friday, Oct. 11, at 4 p.m. in room 1000 of the A. Paul Schaap Science Center. Admission is free.
The Physics Seminar Series will feature presentations by students who participated in collaborative faculty-student research this past summer on Friday, Oct. 11, at 4 p.m. in room 104 of VanderWerf Hall. Admission is free.
The De Pree Art Center and Gallery is showing a photographic study of Great Lakes tug boats by Steve Nelson, professor of art. He will deliver an artist’s talk on Friday, Oct. 11, at 4 p.m. in Cook Auditorium of the De Pree Art Center and Gallery, with a reception following at 5 p.m. The exhibition runs from Wednesday, Oct. 9, through Friday, Nov. 8. Admission is free.
The college’s softball team will hold an intersquad scrimmage on Friday, Oct. 11, at 5 p.m. at Wolters Softball Stadium. Admission is free.
A “Hope on 8th Street” event center organized by the college’s Office of Alumni and Family Engagement will be open on Friday, Oct. 11, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Courtyard Marriott downtown. Alumni and their families will receive “passports” including a variety of exclusive deals for restaurants and shops in downtown Holland.
A reception for the “10 Under 10” honorees will be held on Friday, Oct. 11, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at CityVū Events on the fifth floor of CityFlatsHotel. The alumni being honored are: Hillary Delhagen ’09, a correctional health services creative arts therapist; Kristin Dittenhafer-Reed ’09, an assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry researcher at Hope; Lindsey Ferguson ’09 Hanson, a dancer and actress; Rachel Bakken ’09 Romero, an energy engineer; Alison Garza ’10 Wicker, a humanitarian aid international consultant; Adam Maley ’13, a postdoctoral fellow and disease diagnostics researcher; Christine Washington ’09 Michel, an attorney and law office owner; Diego Romero ’09, a school principal; Andreana Rosnik ’13, a physical chemist and artist; and Matt Rutter ’12, a company founder, church planter and microenterprise training curriculum developer.
The Knickerbocker Theatre is presenting the Indian comedy-drama “Photograph” on Monday-Saturday, Oct. 7-12, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $7 for regular admission, and $6 for senior citizens and children, and will be sold at the door.
The Department of Music will present multiple performing groups during a Homecoming gala concert on Friday, Oct. 11, at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Jack H. Miller Center for Musical Arts. Admission is free.
The college’s club ice hockey team will host Indiana Tech University on Friday, Oct. 11, at 7:30 p.m. at Griffs Ice House. Tickets cost $5, and will be sold at the door.
The Department of Theatre will present “Smokefall” by Noah Haidle on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 11-12, and Thursday-Saturday, Oct. 17-19, at 7:30 p.m. There will also be a free matinee on Sunday, Oct. 13, at 2 p.m. All performances will be in the DeWitt Center studio theatre. Tickets are $10 for regular admission; $7 for senior citizens and Hope faculty and staff; and free for Hope College students and students ages 18 and under, and are available through the college’s Events and Conferences Office or online at hope.edu/tickets.
The Hope College Concert Series will feature Barrie, with Support from Choral Reef, on Friday, Oct. 11, at 7:30 p.m. at the Park Theatre. Advance tickets are $12 for regular admission and $5 for Hope students, and are available through the college’s Events and Conferences Office or online at hope.edu/tickets. Tickets will be $15 at the door.
The Events and Conferences Office is located in downtown Holland in the Anderson-Werkman Financial Center (100 E. Eighth St.). The ticket office is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and can be reached at 616-395-7890.
The activities on Saturday, Oct. 12, will begin with a 0.5K kids’ fun run at 8:30 a.m. and the Donut Run 5K run starting at 9 a.m., both at Ray and Sue Smith Stadium. All proceeds will benefit the student-organized Hope College Dance Marathon, which raises funds for Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital. Registration through Thursday, Oct. 10, is $35 for the general public, alumni, and faculty and staff, and $25 for Hope students and “miracle families” who receive care through the hospital; the two registration rates increase to $40 and $30 respectively on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 11-12.
There will be a softball game for alumnae of the team on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 10:30 a.m. at Wolters Softball Stadium. Admission is free.
A campus cookout will be held on Saturday, Oct. 12, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Phelps Hall Dining Hall. The event will feature a tailgate-themed menu with a variety of food options, the sale of Hope athletics apparel at the adjacent Maas Conference Center, giveaways and family activities. Tickets are $10 for regular admission; $5 for children of ages five to 11, Hope faculty and staff, and Hope students not on meal plan; and free for children four and under.
Volleyball will host Trine University on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 1 p.m. at the Richard and Helen DeVos Fieldhouse. Tickets are $7 for adult general admission, and $3 for general admission for those under 18.
An open house that will provide an opportunity to meet Matthew A. Scogin, who became the college’s 14th president earlier this year, will take place on Saturday, Oct. 12, from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. in the Great Room of the Jim and Martie Bultman Student Center. Admission is free.
The Flying Dutchmen will host Albion College in football at Ray and Sue Smith Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 3 p.m. Tickets are $7 for adult general admission and $3 for general admission for those under 18.
Halftime will feature the introduction of the Homecoming Court and the crowning of the Homecoming king and queen.
Hope music faculty will present a collage concert on Sunday, Oct. 13, at 2 p.m. in the John and Dede Howard Recital Hall of the Jack H. Miller Center for Musical Arts. Admission is free.
The Kruizenga Art Museum is showing the exhibition “Deities and Devotion in Mongolian Buddhist Art” through Saturday, Dec. 14, and the focus exhibition “Capturing Light: The Art of Shin Sawano: A Tradition for the Future of Japan” through Saturday, Oct. 26. The museum is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and admission is free.
The weekend’s affinity gatherings include the 25-year reunion for the Class of 1994 and the 10-year reunion for the Class of 2009; the 100th anniversary celebration for the Sibylline sorority and the Emersonian fraternity, and 185th anniversary celebration of the Fraternal Society; and an “open mic” poetry reading presented by alumni and students of the Department of English.
Advance registration, tickets for all events (except as noted earlier for Hope College Theatre’s production of “Smokefall” and the Hope College Concert Series’ presentation of Barrie, with support from Choral Reef) and a full schedule are available at hope.edu/onebigweekend or by calling the Office of Alumni and Family Engagement at 616-395-7250.
Audience members who need assistance to fully enjoy any event at Hope are encouraged to contact the college's Events and Conferences Office by emailing events@hope.edu or calling 616-395-7222 on weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.