Transcription
December 2013Chapter TeamJosh BurnheimerDebbie DayGreg FanslerPatty FoutzKelly GriffinJack HutchesonJordan McCauleyGinny RitenourBetty Lee RobertsonDon’t ForgetYou are REQUIRED tohave a Virginia Tech PID(vt.edu email address) toaccess the Chapter Formsdatabase.The Chapter Newsletter isa communications toolbetween the Virginia TechAlumni Association and itschapters.If you have any commentsor suggestions, pleasesend them to your chapterliaison. If you haveproblems viewing thenewsletter, please contactGinny Ritenour, ChapterProgram Coordinator.Dear Chapter Volunteers,The end of the year marks the halfway point for our alumni chapterprograms and what a busy and exciting fall we’ve had! Not only werefootball game watching parties and tailgates hosted across the country,but we’ve also seen more community service projects, speaker programs,young alumni mixers, and holiday parties than ever before. Chapters aretaking advantage of our alumni emails and postcard mailers to get theword out, but also ramping up their own social marketing efforts (includingFacebook, Twitter, and local email lists) to ensure that they’re reaching allalumni in the their chapter area. Be sure to ask your chapter liaison formore information or assistance to maximize your marketing efforts.With the holidays quickly approaching, please take note of the alumnioffice closings and university schedule listed below. We will have limitedstaff for some periods throughout the holiday season and the university willbe closed for several days.Let us take this opportunity to thank each of you for your contributions tothe Alumni Association and Virginia Tech and wish you and yours a happyholiday season and a successful and joyful new year. We are truly blessedto have such an outstanding group of volunteers who care so deeply forour alma mater and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.Debbie, Josh, Greg, Patty, Kelly, Jack, Jordan, Ginny, and Betty
Chapter Event Highlight:Hokie Holiday PartiesHoliday parties are some of our most popularchapter events. Hokies are always ready andwilling to share their holiday spirit with fellowalumni and these festive parties are a terrific wayto wrap-up the football game watching seasonand kick-off the holidays.Many chapters have long-standing holiday partytraditions, choosing to host their events at thesame venue or home each year, with optionsranging from potlucks to plated dinners. Alumnilook forward to honoring these traditions andcontinue to return year after year to spend timewith treasured friends.Other chapters look for new and fun ways to drawin local alumni by offering theme parties, one ofour favorites being the Ugly Christmas SweaterParty. The Roanoke Valley Chapter hosted an UglyChristmas Sweater Party this year, inviting alumnito a local restaurant to celebrate the season andparticipate in their Hokies for Heroes communityservice project. Donations were collected for carepackages to be sent to military personnel servingoverseas, while 20% of the dinner checks helpedraise funds for shipping the care packages. Allalumni wearing a sweater or bringing donationswere eligible for a raffle ticket to win seats at aVirginia Tech basketball game.The Roanoke Valley Chapter celebrates the seasonat their Ugly Christmas Sweater PartyOther chapters choose to host a traditionalholiday potluck dinner. The Atlanta Chapter heldjust such an event this year at a local communityroom. The chapter provided main dishes (such asturkey and ham) and alumni were asked to bringa side dish or dessert to share. Participants werealso encouraged to bring a new and unwrappedtoy for a local children’s hospital.Community service projects are a natural fit forholiday parties and are easy to incorporate intoyour event. The Greenville, NC Chapter hostedtheir very first holiday party this year at a local barand grill that provided a family friendly venue.They asked alumni to donate toys or cash for Toysfor Tots and collected donations on the spot.Holiday parties also provide an opportunity tohost your annual speaker event. The PalmettoChapter welcomed Art Buikema, AlumniDistinguished Professor of Biology to their holidayparty this year. Dr. Buikema presented a talk on“Teaching in the New Millennium” then joined inwith alumni to celebrate the season.If your chapter has yet to host a holiday party, talkwith your chapter liaison about opportunities fornext year. Events range from simply hosting aHoliday Happy Hour, arranging a game watchingparty around the ACC Championship or bowlgame, or gathering at the home of a local alumfor fellowship and networking.The Atlanta Chapter joined together to hosta potluck dinner at a local community room
Art Buikema, Alumni Distinguished Professor of Biology,visits with Palmetto Chapter alumniGreenville, NC Chapter Hokies gather atTiebreakers Bar & Grill for their first holiday partyAlumni Design Virginia Tech Hokie Bird Hooded TowelLittle Sinks, LLC recently announced the releaseof their Hokie Bird Hooded Towel, designed toreplicate the beloved Virginia Tech mascot.Little Sinks, LLC was founded by Virginia Techalumni, Scott Michael Cowan ’95 & ’00 andKaren Bednarczyk Cowan ’99. Longtime seasonticket holders, the Cowan family embarked on atrip to Blacksburg, where they would introducetheir two young daughters, Grace and Eden, tolive college football. Their children werefascinated with the lovable mascot paradingaround Lane Stadium. Shortly thereafter, thehooded towel was designed, licensed by VirginiaTech and the Collegiate Licensing Company,and prepared for production.Little Sinks, LLC has worked hard to build a seriesof beautiful “Hokie Inspired” boards on Pinterestwhich is where word of the towel quickly spread.The boards are filled with items dedicated toVirginia Tech, but which also capture the essenceof the Cowan family and the company.Karen ’99 and Scott Cowan, ’95 & ’00,Grace and Eden CowanThe Hokie Bird Hooded Towel is available onlineat www.LittleSinks.com and at the CampusEmporium in Blacksburg.
Community Service Highlight:Minnesota Chapter,Donation Sorting EventMinnesota Chapter volunteers sort goodsArc’s Value Village in Richfield, MNThe Minnesota Chapter participated in a uniquecommunity service project in November, sortingitems for a local charity store.Arc’s Value Village is known as the Twin Cities’best thrift store. For more than 30 years, Arc’s hasopened their doors to help make life better forpeople with intellectual and developmentdisabilities and their families. With 10,000 itemsarriving daily, they rely on volunteers to processinventory and rotate stock.On Saturday, November 23, twelve volunteersfrom the Minnesota Chapter worked a three hourshift at Arc’s, helping them unpack, sort, andstock their winter clothes in their Richfield, MNstore. This event was open to local alumni andtheir families, giving children (and future Hokies!)a chance to participate as well. A total of twelvevolunteers came out to show their support for thisimportant project.When they had finished their shift, thishardworking group of Hokies had processed over 10,500 in retail goods, which directly benefitstheir greater Twin Cities area.Chapter Volunteer Highlight:Adam Ressa ’10,Central Florida ChapterAdam Ressa (front, far right) with Central Florida Chapter,including president Holli Wosnitzer (front, 2nd from left), andLu Merritt, Director of Development for IntercollegiateAthletics (2nd row, far right)Central Florida Chapter volunteer Adam Ressahas been “Imagineering the future” since his2010 graduation from Virginia Tech, where heearned dual degrees in theatre arts and industrialand systems engineering. Following a dream thatbegan as a second grade student, Adam is now afull-time associate set decorator for the WaltDisney Imagineering Prop Department inOrlando, Florida.Adam’s early leadership experiences (includingserving as high school wrestling team captain,theatre department leader, and earning EagleScout) led him to seek out opportunities with hislocal alumni chapter to help promote Hokieevents and programs in the Orlando area. Adamhas served as the Central Florida Chapterwebmaster and vice president.Spheres, the annual magazine of the College forLiberal Arts and Human Sciences, featured Adamin their 2013-2014 issue, where Dean Sue OttRowlands highlighted the wide variety of successesof the college’s alumni.
Staff Highlight:Jamie Cowell-Lucero, Directorof Alumni Relations, Collegeof Agriculture & Life SciencesSince 2006, Jamie hasprovided leadership forVirginia Tech’s College ofAgriculture and LifeSciences’ alumni relationsactivities. She isresponsible for directingthe CALS AlumniOrganization, its boardof directors’ activities andtheir annual “Scramblefor Scholars” golf tournament, for planningspecial events for alumni, faculty, staff, andstudents, and for CALS Connections, the college’saward winning alumni e-newsletter. She serves aschair of the college’s Diversity Council. She alsoholds a joint appointment with the Virginia TechAlumni Relations office where she is responsiblefor assisting with reunions and other specialprograms.As a board member of the National AgriculturalAlumni and Development Association (NAADA),Jamie chairs the education committee which isresponsible for the educational sessions for theannual conference.Jamie received her B.S. and M.S. degrees inAnimal Science from the University of CentralMissouri and Kansas State University, respectively.She is currently working toward a doctor ofphilosophy in agricultural and extension educationfrom Virginia Tech. Jamie enjoys spending timewith her husband, Warren, and daughters, Emmaand Madison, volunteering for MontgomeryCounty 4-H as a Livestock Cloverbud Clubleader, and cheering on the Hokies!Undergraduate AdmissionsPSA: How to Become a Hokie!The Virginia Tech Office of UndergraduateAdmissions has put together a lighthearted yetfactual video about what to expect during theapplication process and what they are looking forin a freshman application.We encourage you to share this fun video withpotential Hokies in your area!2014 Black Alumni Reunion:Save the Date!The 2014 Black Alumni Reunion, “Sharing OurStory: Past, Present, Future,” will be held onMarch 20-23 on the Virginia Tech campus.Set your sights on Blacksburg for a specialoccasion to embrace the past, understand, thepresent, and inspire the future! Join us in Marchfor an exciting reunion weekend full ofcelebrating, socializing, and networking withstudents, faculty and alumni.Registration opens January 2, 2014; early birdregistration will end on March 1, 2014.For volunteer or sponsorship opportunities,contact Latanya Walker.
Dates to Remember: December 20: Fall Commencement December 24 through January 1:All university offices closed January 20: Martin Luther King Holiday(no classes; university offices closed) January 21: Spring semester begins January 25: Scholarship applicationsemailed to early decision students;chapters will receive list of students whoreceived the invitation to apply. If you havenot submitted your updated 2014application, please contact Ginny Ritenour. February 7-8: Drillfield Series: Food forThought March 8-16: Spring Break May 16: Spring Commencement May 30-31: Drillfield Series: Focus onPhotography June 6-7: Drillfield Series: Top of theMountain at Mountain Lake June 16: Hokie Classic Golf Tournament June 28: Summer Beer Festival at VirginiaTech July 10-11: A Day in the Life of CollegeAdmissions August 8-9: Drillfield Series: Happy andHealthy Pet WeekendThe Western Maryland Chapter brings the “sweet” spiritfor their VT vs. UVA football game watching partyBaltimore Chapter volunteers participate in local college fairShenandoah Chapter alumni participated in severalopportunities to volunteer for the local Salvation Army
Greenville, NC Chapter Hokies gather at Tiebreakers Bar & Grill for their first holiday party Karen Bednarczyk Cowan ’99. Longtime season The Hokie Bird Hooded Towel is available online Alumni Design Virginia Tech Hokie Bird Hooded Towel Karen ’9
