A Week of Homecoming Festivities

After spending four full homecomings at Furman, I can say with confidence that this is one of the best weeks on campus! Homecoming is a special and memorable time for students and alumni alike. The excitement and joy that builds up in every student is contagious, and seeing all our friends come back is a great time. This is by far my favorite thing about the weekend! The people are why I love this event, but the events that lead up to the football game throughout the entirety of the week foster incredible school spirit.

The year’s homecoming theme was “Dins on Vinyl”. I will highlight some of my favorite activities. There is an annual corn hole tournament at the Cherrydale Alumni House to decide float pomping themes that will be decorated on the mall. Guess what?! My organization won!

All students were thrilled for this music theme because it was broad and allowed for creativity from various student organizations. This year, Sigma Chi was partnered with Kappa Delta, and we decided to select Prince as our artist. Then we came up with “Purple Rain” as our design. This was strategic because of our favorite color being Paladin purple and matching Furman’s colors. On Thursday night, all organizations gathered on the Mall to begin float pomping. It needed to be done on Friday because all the alumni would be back on campus! Moreover, the Student Activities Board carnival would be happening with the band Jive Talk from Nashville, TN performing that evening! Do not fret, after twelve hours of rolling tissue paper and placing them onto chicken-wire on the wooden structure, it turned out beautifully.

 

The Student Activities board had a plethora of events on Friday night such as a Ferris wheel, miniature roller coasters, free food, a huge bonfire, and more for students, family, and alumni to partake in.

The last major event that I look forward to is the homecoming football game on Saturday. This year we played Chattanooga and won an exciting game 24-20! With this win, Furman is now 7-2 and ranked second in the Southern Conference! In addition, I was nominated by Kappa Delta to be on the homecoming court. I walked out on the field during halftime with my Mom and Dad as my escorts. It made me so happy to hear all my friends cheer for me as I was walking out there.

My last homecoming as an undergraduate was one for the books. It was a fantastic week! It made me realize that Furman will always have a place in my heart. Then, I realized that at the next homecoming, I will be an ALUMNUS! I tell myself currently, do not count the days, make the days count! Here’s to the best to come for the next five and a half months!

JP ‘23