PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — The University of Maine at Presque Isle will host Homecoming 2017: Friends and Family Weekend Thursday to Monday, Oct. 5-9, featuring entertainment and family-friendly activities.
From a show by percussive performance group Plastic Musik to an explosive fireworks display to multiple alumni games for students and the public, all are invited to join the University for its annual Homecoming weekend.
Festivities begin Oct. 5 with the Athletics spaghetti supper fundraiser in the Campus Center Multi-Purpose Room from 5 to 7 p.m. Tickets are available through the Athletics Department or at the door for $7.50. That evening, a Homecoming Dance will be held for students from 9 p.m. to 12 a.m., deejayed by WUPI, in the MPR.
Friday, Oct. 6, will start with an Alumni Coffee Hour for students in the Owl’s Nest from 10 to 11 a.m., presented by the UMPI Alumni Association. A walk to the Riverside Public Market, starting at Gentile Hall and going to the Riverside Park Pavilion, is from 12 to 2 p.m. Coloring for All Ages, an activity sponsored by the UMPI President’s Office, runs from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Owl’s Nest.
Check in for the weekend will be in the Campus Center from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday. All are invited to celebrate the Campus Center as it turns 25 in the MPR at 4 p.m. and stay for Oktoberfest and Pints with Professors on the Campus Center Lawn and in the Owl’s Nest from 4:30 to 6:45 p.m.; cost is $9 for those without a meal plan and a cash bar will be available (proper ID required). Explore the latest show at the Reed Art Gallery, UnREEDable Words by Todd Camplin, during a gallery reception from 5 to 7 p.m.
Percussive performance group Plastic Musik will perform at 7 p.m. in the Auditorium at Wieden Hall, playing a variety of musical genres with plastic boomwhackers, buckets and kiddie pools.
On Saturday, Oct. 7, with the second annual UMPI Alumni Hour will start at 10 a.m. in the MPR, presented by the UMPI Alumni Association and Office of University Advancement. President Ray Rice will give the “State of the University” address. A block party will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the tennis court parking lot, or Gentile Hall if it rains. The party includes music by Heath Bartley, a beer tent, food and community vendors, as well as a car show in the Center for Innovative Learning Parking Lot.
At 12 p.m., support the Owls women’s soccer team as they take on Unity College at the Park Family Field and continue your support with the men’s soccer team as they battle Unity College at 2 p.m.
Wine tasting will be held at the President’s House from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. (proper ID required). Non-alcoholic beverages will be available for students under the age of 21. Honor past coaches and athletes at the Athletics’ Hall of Fame Dinner in the MPR from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. To attend contact sandra.mcdougal@maine.edu; the cost is $20.
The evening will end with fireworks, a bonfire, movie and games. Fireworks will start at 8 p.m. on the Park Family Field, followed by the bonfire with s’mores behind Gentile Hall at 8:15 p.m. The movie “Wonder Woman” will begin at 8:30 p.m. in Gentile Hall, sponsored by Cary Medical Center. Students can compete in Glow in the Dark Capture the Flag at 9 p.m. behind Gentile Hall.
Festivities on Sunday, Oct. 8, include two one-hour tours aboard Molly the Trolley between 10 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. Each ride is $5 per person and leaves from the tennis court parking lot. Sign up at www.umpi.edu/trolley.
Also beginning at 10 a.m. will be the Men’s Alumni Soccer Game at the Park Family Field. For baseball lovers, meet up at the Presque Isle Middle School field for the Alumni Baseball Game at 10 a.m. All runners should make plans to take part in the UMPI Alumni and All-Comers XC 5K at the Park Family Field at 11 a.m. Women’s soccer battles SUNY Canton at 12 p.m. on the Park Family Field. Parents and students meet at the Park Family Field at 2 p.m. for the Parent-Student Disc Golf Tournament. Participants will be entered for a chance to win one free class.
To wind things down, the campus will host a bagel breakfast send-off from 8 to 10 a.m. in the Owl’s Nest.
To register, visit www.umpi.edu/homecoming-reg. For more information contact Lisa Pucci at lisa.pucci@maine.edu or 207-768-9525.
