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Greetings from the Hill

By Nathan Soland '04
April 23, 2008

Spring has found Manitou Heights once again this April. And peering out onto the campus green, it's obvious the community is taking full advantage. Students sit in semi-circles around their professors, who must have received considerable pressure to take classes outside. Frisbees and campus golf balls intersect in the air. Old friends walk and talk with each other, and staff members take the long way back to their desks. Our campus has come out of hibernation and is alive!

NathanSoland
Soland
For me, these spring scenes bring back memories from my time on the Hill -- days I now view with fond memories of laughter, sun and friends. As most do, I have conveniently forgotten there were also final exams, juries, last games, projects, papers, goodbyes and too little time. Remember thinking how grand it would be to be on campus without those pressures? Well, now you can. Return to the Hill May 23-25 for Celebration Weekend, and you'll have just that kind of experience.

In the span of three days, the St. Olaf family gathers together over Celebration Weekend to learn, reconnect, reminisce, worship, engage and enjoy each other's company. The classes of 1938, '43, '48, '53, '58, '63, '68, '73, '78 and '83 celebrate their reunions while thousands of parents simultaneously return to be part of baccalaureate and commencement exercises. Indeed, as the Class of 2008 says goodbye to their student days, alumni from all ages and backgrounds return to relive them. Register to be a part of this important milestone and fun gathering.

Weekend events span from the nostalgic (old films from the 1930s will be shown in the Ole Reels learning seminar) to the entertaining (the Class of 1968, 1973 and 1978 reunion luncheon is rumored to feature the Limestones) to the important (Saturday's Sammenkomst all-alumni gathering) and so much more. A complete schedule of events is available online.

In particular, I invite you to be part of a special event that links the history of our college to its future. At 10 p.m. on Saturday, May 24, the Class of 1958, which is celebrating its 50th reunion, will formally welcome the Class of 2008 into the alumni body with a campus illumination ceremony. Spanning from Mellby Hall to Rolvaag Memorial Library, the campus green will be host to live music, desserts, beverages and a lantern-lighting ceremony. Each senior will be asked to find his or her lantern hung throughout the green and, as a collective Class of 2008, illuminate the campus and join the alumni tradition.

Whether you're celebrating a reunion or just interested in coming back for a festive weekend, the Alumni & Parent Relations staff looks forward to being your hosts. We might even join you for a Frisbee game on the lawn.

Um! Yah! Yah!
Nathan Soland '04
Interim Director of Alumni & Parent Relations

Contact Kari VanDerVeen at 507-786-3970 or vanderve@stolaf.edu.