MSU President's column for Traill County Tribune
May 16, 2015
Mayville State University Alumni Day planned in conjunction with Summerfest
Summer will be here soon! Hopefully this means that most people will have an opportunity to get out and enjoy some great weather and fun outdoor activities. Summer also is a time for community celebrations where people come together and some come “home” for reunions and other gatherings. In Mayville-Portland, the annual Summerfest is a much-anticipated community event. The Mayville Portland Community Club members are doing a great job of organizing and coordinating a celebration that can be enjoyed by young and old June 25-28.
As part of the annual Summerfest activities, the Mayville State University Alumni Association will host the fifth annual Alumni Day at Mayville State University, on Friday, June 26. Activities planned throughout the day include ground-breaking for the Military Honor Garden, a reunion for former residents of Berg Hall, a reunion of library science alumni and former library employees, a guided campus tour, a reception to honor the 2015 Distinguished Alumni and Distinguished Service Award recipients, and the Alumni Association Awards Dinner. The grand finale for the day will be musical entertainment provided by Jazz on Tap +2.
A short program, beginning at 11 a.m. June 26, will highlight the ground-breaking for the Military Honor Garden, which will be located on the grounds south of the Edson and Margaret Larson Alumni and Leadership Center. The monument will feature a life-sized bronze eagle in flight sculpture, an American flag, night lighting, and memorial gardens surrounded by sidewalks. All five branches of the military will be represented on granite plaques. This beautiful and meaningful project will be a tribute to Mayville State faculty, students, and community men and women for their patriotic service in America’s Armed Forces. The intent is to honor anyone who has served in the military. Those honored definitely can be, but do not have to be, Mayville State alumni. For more information about how you can honor a loved one, contact Dena at 701-788-4864 or dena.bergstrom@mayvillestate.edu.
There will be a couple of reunions held during the Alumni Day festivities, including a gathering for former residents of Berg Hall. Folks are invited to gather at Berg Hall from 1 to 4 p.m. If you’re a former Berg Hall resident who’d like to get involved, please indicate your interest at www.mayvillestate.edu/berghall.
Library Science alumni and former library employees are invited to come to Mayville State and see the great updates that have taken place at the Byrnes-Quanbeck Library. An open house will be held at the library from 2 to 4 p.m. This would be a great time to check out the Clenora Quanbeck Memorial Garden located at the southwest corner of the Larson Center too!
The Larson Center will be the site for a reception to honor the 2015 Distinguished Alumni and Distinguished Service Award recipients. This will take place from 3 to 5 p.m. Everyone is welcome to stop by and visit with this year’s honorees. Distinguished Alumni Award recipients will be Karen (Lyng) Asmundson (’90), Dr. James LaBarre (’66), and Leroy McClure, Jr. (’83). Distinguished Service Award recipients will be Mary (Hanson) Iverson (‘68) and Harlan Johnson (ex. ’82).
These honorees will receive their awards at the annual Alumni Association Awards Dinner, which will be held in the MSU Campus Center Luckasen Room beginning at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $20.00 each and can be purchased at www.mayvillestate.edu/alumniday or by calling the MSU Foundation, 701-788-4864. RSVP deadline is Monday, June 8.
Musical entertainment will follow the banquet, beginning at 8 p.m. in the Campus Center Luckasen Room. Jazz On Tap +2 will be entertaining. The public is invited to come and dance, or just to listen to the great sounds. The ensemble will include Mayville State music alumni Kris Eylands (’79), Kirk Overmoe (’78), and Denny Connelly (’72). These guys are all former students of Francis Colby and members of Mayville State’s nationally recognized jazz ensembles of the 1970s, and you may recognize the Jazz on Tap name. This trio has performed at Mayville State on many occasions, usually in conjunction with the annual Northern Lights Art Gallery annual gala.
All of the events planned for Mayville State’s Alumni Day 2015 are open to the public. We cordially invite one and all to take part. We look forward to celebrating with our friends and neighbors and all who come “home” for the weekend.
Further information regarding Mayville State Alumni Day on June 26 is available at 701-788-4750 or alumni.mail@mayvillestate.edu. To purchase tickets for the Alumni Association Awards Dinner, call 701-788-4864 or go to www.mayvillestate.edu/alumniday.