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It’s not your typical alumni event, not even an occasion just for students. Bluefield College’s Homecoming 2012, Friday through Sunday, October 26-28, is a community affair with something for everyone, including former students, current students, and the community at-large.

Chris Shoemaker

October 12, 2012

	A personal invitation from Alumni Director Joshua Cline.
	View the complete Homecoming schedule.
	Register online today.
	Check out Homecoming hotel accommodations.

In addition, the 2012 version of Homecoming at Bluefield College will feature for the first time in 71 years an intercollegiate football game, starring the recently revived Rams at the center of the three-day campus-community Homecoming schedule.

Based on the theme, “We’ve Got a Seat for You,” and designed to bring the greater community together with the campus community, Bluefield College’s Homecoming 2012 schedule features a host of events open to the public, including a golf tournament, theatre, live auction, soccer, tailgating, football, and a community worship service.

The last time Bluefield College played an intercollegiate Homecoming football game was November 20, 1941. The Rams won that day, 30-7, to end the 1941 campaign with a 4-4 win-loss record, but little did they know it would be the school’s last gridiron season for decades to come. With the onset of World War II in December 1941, thousands of young American men were called to active duty, including many -- in fact, most -- of the men who attended and played football at Bluefield College.

Since most of the men were off fighting a war, there were not enough players to field a football squad at BC in the fall of 1942. Consequently, the school scrapped the program, and by the time the war ended in 1945, football at Bluefield College was a mere memory.

That is until now, 2012. After years of study, planning, fundraising and recruiting, and an exhibition schedule in 2011, the Rams are back on the gridiron for intercollegiate competition for the first time in 71 years. With seven fiercely contested games already under their belt in 2012, the Rams are still looking for that first elusive win since 1941, and they’ll try to get it during Homecoming against Lindsey Wilson College.

The game begins at 1:00 p.m. at Mitchell Stadium with pre-game tailgating beginning at 11:30 a.m. and featuring cookouts, a corn-hole tournament with prizes, and boxed lunches for sale for those who don’t want to grill.

Other Bluefield College Homecoming 2012 events open to the BC family and community at-large include:

• Homecoming Golf Tournament, Friday, October 26, 11:30 a.m. at Fincastle Country Club, featuring prizes for the top two four-member teams and designed to raise funds for BC student scholarships
• “Big River,” a BC Theatre presentation of the Tony Award-winning musical adaptation of Mark Twain’s beloved novel “Huckleberry Finn,” Friday, October 26, 7:30 p.m., Harman Chapel
• Live Scholarship Auction, designed to raise funds for BC student scholarships and featuring trips, art, tickets to sporting events, recreation packages, and more, Saturday, October 27, 9:30 a.m., Shott Hall
• Women’s soccer match against West Liberty College, Saturday, October 27, 10 a.m., East River Soccer Complex
• Campus and Community Worship Service, featuring music from BC music students and remarks from BC alumnus and minister Rick Ewing, Sunday, October 28, 9:30 a.m., Harman Chapel
• Sunday brunch, Sunday, October 28, 11:00 a.m., Shott Hall
• “Big River,” a BC Theatre presentation of the Tony Award-winning musical adaptation of Mark Twain’s beloved novel “Huckleberry Finn,” Sunday, October 28, 2:00 p.m., Harman Chapel.

Homecoming events exclusive to Bluefield College students and graduates include:

• Golden Graduates Society Social and Dinner, recognizing alumni from 1962 and beyond, Friday, October 26, 5:00 p.m., Shott Hall
• Hospitality gatherings at Applebee’s in Bluefield, Virginia (for young alumni from the classes of 2001-2011), and Fincastle Country Club (for all alumni), Friday, October 26, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
• Student Homecoming Dance, for current students and recent graduates and featuring the crowning of the 2012 Homecoming Court, Friday, October 26, 9:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., Fincastle Country Club
• Alumni Breakfast and Annual Alumni Association Meeting, including the election of new Alumni Association officers, Saturday, October 27, 8:30 a.m., Shott Hall
• Alumni Awards Reception, featuring awards for the Gallery of Distinguished Graduates, Honorary Alumna, Delgado Christian Service Award, Young Alumnus of the Year and Sports Hall of Fame, Saturday, October 27, 6:30 p.m., The Ramsey (300 Ramsey Street, Bluefield, WV).

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