From the president
Dear alumni and friends of WOU,
Every season at WOU carries a different feeling on campus. The more reflective summer season, full of incoming student sessions and planning, transitions to a colorful and engaging autumn. The fall edition of the Western Oregon University alumni magazine represents this same transition of reflection on our past and the active community and promising future for WOU.
This October, the theme for our annual Homecoming and Family Weekend event is A Walk Down Memory Lane. As you reconnect with your alma mater and old classmates in person, like those highlighted in Sullivan and Castle’s feature article Band of Brothers, we encourage you to reflect on our past and the impact WOU has had in your personal and professional lives. News of alumni awards, a service learning trip and our efforts to stay connected with you through social media and invitations to athletic and art events represent the current vibrant life that defines this season on campus. And finally, those articles that represent our future highlight our long term commitment to fiscal and environmental sustainability—and honoring our rich history to come full circle.
As you thumb through this magazine and have your own walk down memory lane over your afternoon coffee or on break from work, I hope the following stories—be they those about our past, our current campus, or the strong future that awaits this community—overwhelm you with a sense of pride. After all, you have played a role in shaping the story of this beautiful campus. As I look to the future, I hope that your pride for WOU will turn into your greater involvement with our alumni and campus community. The ability for your alma mater to prosper depends in part on the quality and affordability of the current campus—but also on our ability to involve our alumni and friends and hold tight to our roots as we reach for the sky.
Please read on to learn more about the new people in the Annual Fund and Alumni Relations offices who I hope you will get to know personally. And read about the many ways for you to be involved with your alma mater. Our future truly depends on your engagement today.
With pride,
John P. Minahan
President, Western Oregon University