Dear Fellow Alumni,
As the sun set on the gridiron one Saturday
late in the month this past August, the halftime scoreboard
showed Ferris in the lead against arch-rival, Grand Valley State.
(How can that not put a smile on your face?) The third quarter,
however, witnessed a Laker comeback as their home-field fans
cheered them on. Then - as if transformed from glory years past
- Charlie Gunsel (AS'99) snapped the ball to Charles "Sparky"
McEwen (AS'91), who dodged one Laker after the next before tossing
a pass downfield into the arms of team captain Bill Scheible
(B'77) for a much need touchdown, his second of the game.
The Bulldog Football Alumni went on to defeat
the GVSU Alumni team by the convincing score of 41-26, thanks
to generations of Bulldog greats who gathered in Allendale to
participate in this new tradition, winning back for Ferris the
traveling trophy lost by a mere four points just one year earlier.
Why did these football alumni, from the '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s and the last five years return to play this game? Tradition. Ferris Football dates back to 1900, and today, the Alumni game helps our former players celebrate that history while providing support and encouragement to our current student-athletes.
A month later, on a dark rainy Thursday morning in September, acting on the creative idea of alumnus and staff member, Matt Eickhoff (B'03), members of the Student Alumni Gold Club began covering the University seal located on the campus quad with plastic. As dawn broke and television cameras recorded the scene, President Eisler and several staff members joined the group to help announce their plan to cover that seal with coins to the benefit the University's United Way/American Red Cross hurricane relief fundraising efforts. Gold Club members held vigil at the seal throughout the day and night asking fellow students, faculty and staff to contribute. Their efforts netted more than $1,700. (For more on the University's relief efforts, see page 9.)
Why take on this task uncomfortably - albeit
fittingly - in the rain? Community. Our students know they are
a part of a great school, great community and great nation.
The impact that small groups of committed people can make never ceases to amaze me. Ferris State University offers numerous opportunities for such moments, where the worlds of engaged students and alumni intersect. As I reflect on 2005, these are but two of many such moments, both big and small, that take place each and every year.
We all as alumni, friends, parents and students have much to be thankful for, and much to be proud of at Ferris. Looking forward to a new year, I know already that some of the best moments of 2006 will be assisting you as you contribute to the achievement that is Ferris today, and what will be the Ferris of tomorrow.
Sincerely,
Jeremy Mishler, E ‘96
Director, Alumni Relations,
Annual Giving & Advancement Services
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