'Focus on reconnecting' brings alumni home

“Reconnecting” — that’s the central purpose of everything that’s happening tomorrow to bring Waterloo alumni back to campus under the umbrella of Reunion 2011.

“This program brings a focus on reconnecting our alumni to the university and each other,” says the director of alumni affairs, Jason Coolman (left). “After much feedback and reflection of our program formerly known as Homecoming, the university saw an opportunity to focus our resources on strengthening our alumni relations through faculty reunions while maintaining some of our strongest cross-campus events.”

One thing that’s new this year will be visible at Warrior Field on the north campus: “Alumni and guests will be able to support the Warrior football team as they return to the field for their second home game in our exclusive Alumni VIP Tent at the east end of the field, where they can cheer on our athletes and reconnect with each other.”

Coolman adds: “Cross-campus events such as the AHS Fun Run, University of Waterloo Art Gallery Exhibits and cultural events including Renison’s East Asian Festival, and St. Paul’s Pow-wow, are also open to guests to attend. Many faculties have reunion events so there should be something for everyone.”

There’s an outline schedule of tomorrow’s events, provided by the alumni affairs office, as part of “When and where” on the right-hand side of this Daily Bulletin. Here are a few highlights:

• Applied health sciences will hold its annual fun run Saturday morning — one or two trips around the ring road, running or walking, starting outside Matthews Hall at 10:15 a.m. Participants will travel in a counterclockwise direction on the inside lane of the road, and vehicles on the ring road, including buses, will use only the outside lane (entering at University Avenue or Columbia Street and turning right — not left, as yesterday’s Daily Bulletin managed to say). A barbecue for participants follows the run.

• From 11:00 to 3:00, Renison University College will host its 17th East Asian Festival (right). Guests can enjoy an array of live performances showcasing the art, music, flavours, festivities and culture of East Asia. They can watch dance performances, visit the raffle table, try on kimonos at the interactive display booth, try their hand at origami, get their face painted, or taste a specially prepared Asian lunch from the cafeteria. Renison has also invited Bishop Ralph Spence, whose formal titles include Herald Extraordinary, to present a talk on the Flags of East Asia after the festival in the Dunker Family Lounge along with a wine and cheese reception. This annual event raises funds for the growth and promotion of the East Asian Studies program at the college, allowing it to continue to build community spirit, develop cultural and educational opportunities with Pacific Rim countries and promote the program.

• The Aboriginal Pow-wow to be held at St. Paul’s University College (11 a.m. to 5 p.m.) features artisans, food venders, and storytelling, traditional dancing and drumming. ”This year’s theme, ‘Celebrating Communities’, speaks to the central priority of Aboriginal Services, which is to create positive partnerships across all cultures within the university as well as the wider community,” says Luane Lentz, coordinator of that office. “Our intent with the Pow-wow is to guide both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students and community members toward understanding and appreciating the varied aspects of Aboriginal culture as well as enrich the lives of all who attend this gathering.” There’s a $5 admission charge (children free, students free with non-perishable food item).

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A brand-new team bus will transport Warrior varsity teams across the province and beyond. The bus has been wrapped in the new Warrior brand designed by Waterloo's publication coordinator Steve Brooks in coordination with Ayr Coach Lines. “This bus will be seen by thousands of people and is an important tool in our overall branding efforts, as well as a source of pride for our student-athletes,” says director of athletics Bob Copeland. Ayr Coach Lines is the official bus sponsor of the Warriors. The new vehicle will see its first action today when the men's hockey team travels to Western for an exhibition game, followed by the women's hockey team, which travels to Pittsburgh for an exhibition game against Robert Morris University on Saturday.

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Four to join athletic hall of fame

Four historic figures in Warrior sports will join the Athletic Hall of Fame in a celebration to be held tomorrow morning in the alumni tent at Warrior Field. The induction ceremony is scheduled for 9:30 a.m., and there will be a buffet lunch (tickets $23) before the football Warriors’ 1 p.m. game against the visiting Windsor Lancers.

It honours “members of the Warrior family who have made a significant contribution to Waterloo athletics and beyond”, says an athletics department news release. Here are parts of the citations it offers for the four new stars:

Kurt Boese, wrestling coach, 1969-1978: Kurt Boese earned five Canadian wrestling titles between 1958 and 1963, and represented Canada in the 1960 Olympic Games, the 1962 Commonwealth Games (bronze medal), and the 1963 Pan American Games (bronze again).

For many years he was a coach at the Kitchener YMCA, leading teams and many individual wrestlers to numerous championships. He was appointed coach of the Ontario wrestling team for the first Canada Winter Games in 1967, which claimed top spot.

In 1969 Boese began his coaching career at the University of Waterloo. Of the 12 university teams competing for the Ontario university championship at the time, Boese guided the Warriors to three gold medals, one silver medal, and two bronze medals over a span of nine years.

Boese's outstanding qualifications led him to be selected as coach of Canada's Olympic team in 1972, where he coached three of his Warrior athletes, Egon Beiler, Pat Bolger, and George Saunders, all of whom are also now members of the Athletic Hall of Fame.

Jeff Goldsworthy, badminton, 1978-1982: Jeff Goldsworthy was born in Kitchener in 1959 and started playing badminton at the KW Granite Club in 1965. He was twice Ontario High School Champion in singles and once mixed doubles champion.

A former member of the National team, Goldsworthy played for the Warriors from 1978-1982, winning an Ontario University Athletics team championship his first season while claiming two silver medals and one gold medal during his playing career with Waterloo.

He was a member of the all-Canadian high school badminton team for three years and was the Canadian junior singles and doubles champion in 1978. In 1994 Goldsworthy was a Canadian Masters Champion in the over-35 age category, and in 1997 he won the Masters 35-plus singles and doubles in the Yonex US Open.

Goldsworthy graduated from Waterloo in 1983 with a BSc and completed his doctorate in chiropractic medicine in 1987. He operates a chiropractic clinic in Kitchener.

John Shoniker, football, 1991-1995: John Shoniker played Warrior football for five years before graduating with an arts degree. The heart and soul of the Warrior defence, he dressed every regular season game throughout his Canadian Interuniversity Sport career.

Shoniker has been described as “one of the most feared players in the league” and had a pure passion for the sport of football. He sits eighth in all-time Waterloo tackles and third in sacks. He also has the record for the largest weight on the bench press.

Shoniker was named an OUA first team all-star twice (1993, 1995) and a second team all-star once. In his final season, he was named a CIS first team all-Canadian. He also picked up awards as rookie of the year (1991) and best lineman as team captain (1995).

He is currently vice-president of Integrated Solutions. The John Shoniker Football Excellence Award valued at up to $1,800 is provided annually to student-athletes in the Warriors football program, recognizing athletic talent, contribution to Warrior athletics and contribution to the team.

Fred Wilder, golf, 1972-1976: Fred Wilder was the backbone of the Waterloo men's golf program for four years. Coached by long time Waterloo golf coach Jack Pearse, Wilder was not only atop the Ontario University golf scene, he was competitive in several Canadian and US Amateur golf tournaments.

Wilder was a three time OUA silver medalist while leading his team to two OUA championships (1972, 1975). The lefty was also a champion in several invitationals, capturing the individual title at the Western Ontario Division Championship in 1976 and winning as a team in the event twice. He was also a two-time individual winner of the Waterloo Invitational.

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Diverse drops in the daily drizzle

A contingent of civil engineering students and faculty will head for the University of Toronto today to attend a conference on "Probabilistic Methodologies in Water and Wastewater Engineering". The event is organized in part by Ponnu Ponnambalam of Waterloo's systems design engineering department.

One of the students behind the Waterloo Banking Project, which is getting going with the aim of establishing student-run financial services, is Helena Hua Cao of mathematics. She writes to announce "a personal finance survey with a $500 draw prize. This is research to understand student finance and how to serve students better in terms of financial services and education. Waterloo Banking Project is an organization of Waterloo and Laurier students working to establish student-run financial services on our campuses. The institution would offer accounts, loans, and budget planning in partnership with an bank or credit union. The services would be competitively priced and structured to make sense for Waterloo and Laurier students, to help those students graduate with more money, less debt, and better financial skills."

An Ontario Heritage Trust historic plaque will be unveiled at 1:30 today beside the library building at Wilfrid Laurier University. The plaque recognizes a history (shared by the University of Waterloo for almost half its length) that goes back to the founding of the Waterloo Lutheran Seminary 100 years ago. Today's unveiling is part of centenary celebrations at Laurier leading up to the actual anniversary next month of the predecessor institution's founding in 1911.

Andy Houston of the department of drama is the director of "Here Be Dragons", a multimedia performance scheduled for tonight, Saturday and Sunday nights in downtown Kitchener. "A young man grows up in Canada, between these two territories," a publicity release narrates. "He lives in a place colonised and dominated by Europeans, still suspicious and fearful of the dragon and other unknowns. As a descendent of people who revere the dragon, he must navigate carefully; as a person who identifies as a sexual orientation at odds with his parents’ expectations, his navigation is doubly hard. Here Be Dragons is a multi-media performance that will guide its audience on a journey of displacement; a mythogeographical mapping of queer, Asian-Canadian identity in downtown Kitchener." The performance begins with an outdoor tour, starting at the Hong Kong Plaza (265 King Street East) at 8:00 each evening.

CAR

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