Plainwell sophomore Jordan Rife, vice president of Trout’s hall council, said the Homecoming games and ultimate victory gave them a sense of community.

“It makes me really proud because Trout Hall is not an honors hall and we don’t have a (residential) college,” Rife said. “We made connections and friends through Homecoming.”

Trout had to put a lot of effort into getting prepared for the homecoming games, Rife said.

Trout prepared for the Homecoming events by training with mock Homecoming events in the hall, said Flint sophomore Quinton Williams.

“We hid a fake medallion in our hall,” Williams said. “We call it floor wars.”

Williams was the choreographer for the Rock Rally dance, and said in the past, Trout residents were not as organized.

“We tried to get as many people involved as we could,” said Midland sophomore Josh Finch. “We knew that with participation, we could do better at the events.”

Rife said as one of the main coordinators for Trout’s Homecoming committee, her strategies were to get involvement and positive attitudes.

“I was constantly posting on Facebook to go sign up for events or search for the medallion,” Rife said.

The Homecoming Week festivities included the Rock Rally, field games, medallion hunt, chalking, float building, the Amazing Race, the mystery event and trivia games.

“I’m really proud we had participation in every single event,” Rife said. “We had outstanding freshmen and sophomores that made it a big deal.”

Williams said although they were not able to come out on top for all of the Homecoming events, they kept their spirits high.

“Some of the events we didn’t do so hot in,” Rife said. “So I tried not to let people get discouraged.”

Finch said though competition is high throughout Homecoming Week, within north campus it is friendly.

“Personally, this is one of my favorite times of the year, I love Homecoming Week,” Finch said. “I love how much fun it can be, and as a hall, we strived to do our best, so we are excited about next year.”

Golden Ambassador Meredith Clark

Golden Ambassador Alan Jones

Alan Jones and Meredith Clark were named Golden Ambassadors after Friday night’s Rock Rally. The two were part of the top five male and top five female Homecoming ambassadors and were voted on by faculty and students starting Oct. 9.

Jones and Clark were linked by a mutual friend, but had never really interacted. They clicked right away, however, and spent the rest of the week hanging out. The two agreed they were thrilled to share the experience with each other.

“We have this connection and we really think we’ll stay friends,” Jones said. “I don’t know how to explain it, but we just understand each other. We’re like a Twizzler.”

Jones said Clark made things easier and more enjoyable.

Clark, a Clarkson native, was nominated by First Book, a national nonprofit organization she started at CMU. The organization promotes literacy for underprivileged children by giving them their first books.

First Book fundraises throughout the semester to provide books for two schools. She described the end result as a Christmas-morning feeling.

Clark has also been involved with Orchesis Dance Theatre since her sophomore year. She said she has been dancing since the age of three and finds a passion in every dance from ballet to hip-hop.

“I’ve had an overall positive experience here at CMU,” Clark said. “I came here as a Leadership Advancement Scholar and it has really been instrumental in my success as a student leader at CMU.”

Clark is also a lunch buddies mentor, Leadership Safari guide and is involved in the Alternative Breaks Program.

Lauren Johnson, Troy CMU alumna and close friend of Clark, said Clark is a good representation of the university and the award represents everything she strives for in life.

“Meredith is a well-rounded student with an extreme passion and drive for what she wants,” Johnson said. “She leads a good life and a lot of people can learn from her. (She’s) a perfect mix between a type A and type B personality.”

Jones was nominated by his fraternity Kappa Alpha Psi. The Detroit native said his fraternity has been the outlet to many of his other involvements at CMU.

Keeping involved has been a key part of his experience. Jones is a leading member of Sexual Aggression Peer Advocates, a resident assistant in Herrig Hall, a participant of Leadership Camp and a member of Word Hammer.

Through his fraternity, he also became part of the National Pan-Hellenic Council and is now the president.

“The people here at Central have been great, and it’s a good feeling to be able to represent everyone who has supported us every day,” Jones said. “It’s as if we are the face for all those who don’t get recognition.”

In his limited spare time, Jones enjoys Netflix movies and participating in intramural sports. He also enjoys adding to his collection of bow ties and bouncy balls.

John Ketchum, a Saginaw senior and close friend of Jones said he is excited for his friend and knows he can make an impact.

“Alan doesn’t think individually, but thinks about the student body as a whole,” Ketchum said. “Alan is the person out of our whole group of friends that we look (at) to get better. He is dedicated to everything he does.”

After chatting with old winners, Jones and Clark both see being Golden Ambassadors as something that never stops giving.

“You are always a Gold(en) Ambassador,” Clark said. “This is a life-long honor, and winning is not just for us, but it’s for everyone.”

The two agreed being a Golden Ambassador has been the most memorable part of college so far, and said they felt a sense of blessing, honor, appreciation and love.

The two agreed it is exciting to see people who make a difference on campus this year and know those people could be ambassadors next year.

About 1,200 people gathered in Warriner Hall’s Plachta Auditorium to watch Tucker’s stand-up show.

Tucker danced onto the stage, accompanied by fog and flashing lights. He was applauded as he flaunted his Central Michigan University sweatshirt.

“I am in the middle of nowhere-land here (in Mount Pleasant),” Tucker said. “I was like, ‘Where the hell am I?’ I thought I was going to prison.”

The audience laughed at Tucker’s mocking description of Mount Pleasant. He also cracked jokes about CMU’s football loss against Eastern Michigan University, targeting the football players among the crowd.

Farmington Hills freshman Shafer Johnson said the show was everything he expected it to be.

“(The show) was really funny, especially when he started mocking (people) in the audience,” Johnson said. “London Brown was also really funny.”

Brown was the second opening act to Tucker’s show. He was discovered by Tucker and has been on tour with him since May.

Brown’s show involved dramatic body movement and he used the microphone in his jokes and dance moves. The audience laughed at his ballet-type performance as he described an airplane flight.

Comedian Terry Hodges was the other opening act. He emphasized the need for people to enjoy life.

“You just have to have some fun,” Hodges said. “But stay away from drugs and alcohol.”

Tucker joked about his recent troubles with the IRS and encouraged audience members to save their money. He also mentioned his recent speeding ticket and called police childish for waiting around for speeding cars.

As part of his ending act, Tucker did an impression of Michael Jackson, complete with singing a portion of Jackson’s “Why.”

Paul Barlow said he enjoyed hearing Tucker talk about Michael Jackson. The Mount Pleasant senior said he found it to be a well-rounded show.

“It’s more than just a show,” Barlow said. “Chris always has some advice within his shows. It’s always good to hear him.”

The anniversary of this march became a national day to celebrate “coming out.”

Coming Out Week at Central Michigan University is a week full of events coinciding with Homecoming Week put on by CMU’s Office of LGBTQ Services, Spectrum and Transcend. The week is put on to help bring light to the LGBTQ community.

“Next week is a part of a national celebration,” said Shannon Jolliff, director of LGBTQ Services. “Events are held annually to celebrate coming out and to raise awareness of the LGBTQ community.”

Events will take place Monday through Friday at various locations around campus.

“Shannon Jolliff works very hard every year to provide educational and entertainment activities to help the CMU community participate in the national celebration,” Jon Humiston, student ombuds officer and president’s office assistant said.

“Coming Out Week is one of our main events of the year where we focus on improving the visibility of the LGBTQ community on campus and helping people become more knowledgeable about the LGBTQ community,” said Justin Gawronski, a Macomb sophomore and president of Spectrum. “We put this event on in order to show LGBTQ students on campus that it is okay to be who they are and there are outlets for support and advocacy on campus.”

From 7 to 9 p.m. Monday in the Bovee University Center Rotunda, The Queer Monologues will be performed by a group of students.

“The Queer Monologues are meant to raise awareness of issues within the LGBTQ community,” Gawronski said.

From 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday night there will a screening of the film “Fish Out of Water” in the East Campus Herrig Classrooms 2 and 3, where members of the LGBTQ community are teaming up with RAs in east campus. After the screening, they will hold discussions aimed at trying to change common perceptions about the LGBTQ community.

Wednesday’s event is Drag Queen Bingo hosted by Sabin, which will take place at 7 p.m. in Powers Hall room 243.

“This is always a popular event where people can come out, play bingo, win prizes and be entertained by whatever Sabin decides to do,” said Gawronski. “Sabin is a staple of Central Michigan life and performed in the drag show last year as well as drag queen bingo last fall.”

Thursday is Coming Out at Kaya night, where people will meet at Kaya Coffee & Tea Co., 1029 S. University St., to share personal stories about struggles they have had to face when deciding to “come out of the closet.”

“Everyone comes to Kaya at 7 p.m. and people are offered the opportunity to share their stories that pertain to coming out, or any issue with the LGBT community,” Gawronski said.

For the final event, which will take place at 7 p.m. Friday in Pearce Hall room 127, Andrea Gibson, an award-winning poet, will be performing slam poetry. Her poetry focuses on gender norms, stereotypes and issues facing the LGBTQ community today.

“We would love to see CMU students, faculty and staff support at the events,” Jolliff said. “We have planned an amazing week of events for everyone to enjoy.”

Although the hall has won the Maroon Cup, awarded for participation in Homecoming events, the past two years running, Lake Orion sophomore Meghan Price said the week is more about having fun.

“Winning would be fun, but it’s definitely not the main reason for participating,” she said.

She said the open and inviting atmosphere in Larzelere is probably one of the main reasons why so many residents are involved in the Homecoming activities.

“It looks like there are more people excited this year than last year and we had a pretty big turnout last year,” Price said. “So I’m excited to see how it turns out.”

Price said she is in charge of organizing the chalking event. She said she had to add more spots since there were so many people interested in signing up.

“There’s a lot of spirit in Larzelere,” she said. “We really want to go out and have fun with the different events.”

The sense of community is strong in Larzelere, said Bad Axe junior Nick Varner.

“We’re expecting a very good turnout,” he said. “I already have two full pages of people who are interested in participating in the Medallion Hunt and Mock Rock. I’m very excited to be the event coordinator this year.”

Larzelere Hall’s team found the medallion two years ago and just missed it last year, Varner said.

“We have a history of being really involved,” Varner said. “Events like Hall Council build up that bond between residents. We want Larzelere to be a place where you make friends and bond with neighbors to build connections that will last the rest of your life.”

Varner said Larzelere probably has the most active Hall Council on campus, which contributes to the high turnout for Homecoming Week activities.

Mason sophomore Mike Schmidt said he was so involved with the Medallion Hunt last year that it sometimes kept him up at night.

“When everybody wants to find the same thing, everybody gets together and you get to know people,” Schmidt said. “It brings you together.”

Schmidt said he planned to stay involved this year during Homecoming Week by participating in the Food Relay and Mock Rock.

“This hall has a really good sense of community and lots of encouragement to get involved,” Schmidt said. “We have a thing here and it’s called ‘Larzy Love.’ It’s a thing that welcomes everybody and encourages everybody.”

Troy Heffron, Alan Jones, Will Damian, Robert Dolecki and Jon Rusch are the top five nominees for this year’s Homecoming Male Ambassador. One of the five will be voted by students and faculty members as Gold ambassador, to be announced Friday.

The five were first nominated by registered student organizations or campus organizations. They then filled out an application and were notified last May they had made top eight. Following was an interview process where five judges determined the top five.

“It’s neat seeing how we all came from different areas of campus and unique experiences,” Heffron said. “It’s a great honor to be able to represent CMU and be part of this tradition.”

The Greenville senior was nominated by the Volunteer Center’s Alternative Breaks program for which he is chairman.

Heffron said the program has helped him grow, understand diversity and increase his knowledge of social issues.

He is also involved in the Sports Management Association and is a resident assistant in Saxe Hall.

Jones was nominated by Kappa Alpha Psi. The Detroit senior said Kappa has been his outlet to do everything he has done in life and looks forward to the annual Homecoming festivities.

“Being Homecoming Ambassador is what I value and what I’m all about,” Jones said. “I am able to represent CMU and Homecoming to the level that it deserves.”

Jones also dedicates his time to Sexual Aggression Peer Advocates, is a RA in Herrig Hall, and is a part of Leadership Camp and Word Hammer.

Damian is the only non-senior nominee. The Holland native is in his third year at CMU.

He came into Leadership Camp as a high school senior and said the experience solidified his decision to attend CMU. He was chosen to be a facilitator as a freshman, and said his experience has influenced all his other involvements.

Damian was nominated by Larzelere Hall Council. He is a second-year RA for the hall and said he is grateful for the opportunity the hall has given him.

“To me, this means being able to stand up and say thank you to all the people I have interacted with here at CMU because they have all influenced me in some way,” Damian said. “I want to let them know their influence has real, tangible results.”

Dolecki, often introduced as “Rockin’ Robert,” is a senior from Farmington Hills. He is a Fabiano/Emmons/Woldt Hall Council nominee.

He is part of Sibs Weekend, for which he is PR co-chairman, and Leadership Safari, which he has been part of since being a participant freshman year. He also participates in various Alternative Breaks and hall council events.

“CMU has been a roller coaster experience with a lot of ups and downs,” Dolecki said. “I think it’s important for a Homecoming ambassador though, because it shows that once they’ve been knocked down, they haven’t stayed down.”

Reusch was nominated by Sigma Alpha Epsilon, of which he is president.

In addition to his fraternity, he dedicates his time to College 101, an alternative education program on campus. Reusch is also a Leadership Safari guide, a campus ambassador and is becoming a member of the National Society of Leadership and Success.

“It’s just a blessing that we are all put in the position to be Homecoming ambassadors,” Reusch said. “I’m not any more special than any other person and I’m just rooting for all of us to have a good week.”

Voting for golden ambassador will be opened until Friday at vote.cmich.edu.

Last year, over 3,000 graduates returned for Homecoming weekend. This year, CMU Alumni Relations expects around 3,500 alumni to attend the game and Alumni Village.

Chris Austin, associate director of Alumni Relations, said Alumni Village is a campus-wide celebration that takes place from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday near Rose Pond.

“We started the Alumni Village concept about seven years ago, and the event has grown each year since inception,” Austin said. “The event provides alumni a place to gather and revisit with an old professor or group of college friends in one central location.”

2010 Holland alumnus Ben DeJonge is one of many alumni returning to take part in the Homecoming festivities.

“I’m really looking forward to hanging out with old friends and watching a great football game between Central and Miami,” DeJonge said.

DeJonge and his wife and fellow alumna Emily DeJonge, plan to return to CMU in years to come.

“Making the trip back to Mount Pleasant always brings back good memories of being a student,” DeJonge said. “And participating in all the festivities reminds us why we are proud of being a Chippewa.”

Caleb Newman, a 2008 alumnus, said he is very excited to attend for this year’s homecoming celebration.

“It will be my first Homecoming as an alumni,” Newman said.

Newman, who now lives in Ann Arbor, said it has been too long since his last visit to Mount Pleasant.

“I can’t remember the last time I’ve been up to Mount Pleasant,” he said. “It’s going to be a nice break, good to get away from Ann Arbor and (University) of Michigan.”

He said he is hoping to catch up with some old friends in the School of Broadcasting and Cinematic Arts department as well as in the Volunteer Center.

One of the events he is most looking forward to is the cardboard boat race.

“I saw it when I was an undergrad,” Newman said. “It was interesting to watch.”

“It’s a celebration of all the hardwork and commitment that all the students, faculty and the university as a whole, and the community and the businesses put forth throughout
the year,” she said. “And Homecoming is when you get to celebrate and relax and all that hard work becomes fun.”

Alumni from all over, as well as students, celebrated in the homecoming fashion this past week.

Jenison freshman Rachel Radecki said it does not matter whether you are an alum or a student — everyone has shared the same experence.

“It’s just school spirit. Everyone getting together and celebrating CMU, I feel like it’s a huge bonding experience and everybody celebrates together. It’s so much fun.”

Rock Rally

Charlie Brown may have always lost playing football. But he won the 2009 Rock Rally.

The team made up of Saxe, Herrig and Celani halls placed first in the mock rock with a performance inspired by the 1950s cartoon.

On the Fly Productions performs during the Rock Rally Friday night in Plachta Auditorium. On the Fly Productions integrated a Transformers theme into their dance to tie with two other teams for third place in the mock rock competition. (Paige Calamari/Staff Photographer)

The group rehearsed every day for about a week, and SHC Hall Council President Craig Johnson was quite happy the team won.

“It just proves hard work pays off,” the Lake City sophomore said. “People weren’t expecting us to win and we weren’t favorites going in — coming out victorious was good for
us.”

Thorpe Hall took second place in the rally and, for the first time in the mock rock’s history, there was a three-way tie for third place between Barnes Hall, Larzelere Hall and On
the Fly Productions.

Homecoming Co-Chairwoman and St. Clair Shores senior Danielle Leone said she was impressed with everyone’s performance.

“Rock Rally performances were outstanding, watching them was amazing,” Leone said. “All I could think was how long it took them to prepare and think of their performances.”

Other announcements

Rock Rally was more than just performances.

Rochester senior Jessica Parker and Macomb senior Scott Hillman were named the 2009 Gold Ambassadors.

“It feels surreal — it was an honor to even be nominated,” Hillman said. “I never saw it coming.”

Many CMU alumni returned to celebrate homecoming weekend as well.

CMU alumna and 2007 Gold Ambassador Jacklyn Welsheimer said she missed CMU and is happy to be back.

“I feel like I’m at home,” Welsheimer said. “There’s something about being here and hearing the fight song that is irreplaceable.”

In between mock rock acts, attendees were entertained by dance and a cappella singing groups.

Fish N Chips, CMU’s male a cappella group, performed “Carry On Wayward Son” by Kansas.

“We have done this for the past two years,” said Howell senior Kevin Troshak. “When we chose that song, we figured it was a song everyone knows, likes and can sing along
with.”

Muskegon senior and Rock Rally coordinator Jenny Zuzelski said, overall, everything went well.

“I think it ran very smoothly and everyone who was in charge of their department ran it without flaw,” Zuzelski said.

-Senior Reporter Jake May contributed to this report.

Others are encasing themselves in cardboard.

The 12th Annual Cardboard Boat Race, sponsored by Central Michigan University’s Engineering and Technology Department, will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Rose Ponds next to the Student Activity Center.

These corrugated corsairs will not be racing for doubloons but for immortal glory, and some to get full credit in their EGR 120: Introduction to Engineering course.

Participants must sit three to four in a boat, paddle along the north Rose Pond, carry the boat over the land bridge, then drop it in the south Rose Pond and paddle down around the statue, all while competing against several other teams in the water and for the best time overall.

“There are usually 100 kids plus, (and) trials of five or six teams at a time,” said Livonia senior Steve Roell, four-year member of the CMU chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

For the giggles

While the competition is required for EGR 120 students, many of the members of ASME are competing for the thrill of it.

“We’re entering two boats, mainly against the other student groups. It’s just another fun project for us to do,” said Battle Creek senior and president of ASME Jeremy Worthington. “We’ll kick butt, we’ve got plenty of smart people and two boats.”

It might be easy to imagine a cardboard boat as simply a box big enough for a few people to sit in with paddles, but teams that are going for the win are putting much more thought into their design and construction.

In-depth calculations regarding surface area and buoyancy are a must for a successful vessel, especially because each team is only allotted a very specific materials list consisting of cardboard sheets, duct tape and “liquid nails” that can be used as caulk or glue.

“It just seemed like a cool idea. (We’re building) a canoe with a triple-hull design,” said Lake Orion freshman Adam Bryce.

He was waterproofing the underside of “The Rum Runners” hull Tuesday with a roll of duct tape.

Canoes a popular choice

Canoe-inspired designs were a popular choice in the building room in the Engineering and Technology Building because of the slipstream design. The wedge-shaped ends of a canoe allow it to cut through the water effectively. But it also comes with hazards.

“Canoes are sweet as long as you don’t tip them,” Bryce said.

The long, relatively narrow shape makes this a constant concern.

But historical performance was a strong consideration as well.

“Whoever won, we tried to copy that boat,” Bryce said. “It was a canoe.”

The “Rum Runner” crew is hoping to get its boat done early before the rush of construction Friday, but Roell seems to be looking forward to it.

“I see it getting done very late Friday night, under the gun and with plenty of alcohol,” Roell said.

The atmosphere was intense. All were hoping that all the work they put in didn’t go to waste.

But at 10:51 p.m. their entire dorm was celebrating as they were the team to finally bring home with the medallion.

The clue Thursday night said “Even though he doesn’t have a building named after him, as the ones before him, he still has a special place on campus. It’s off the road less traveled and the light continues to shine on what you seek. When you view from above, your prize can be found on the President’s staff.”

Bay City junior Tiffany Kostus, left, Bay City junior Alecia Koczenasz, center, and Royal Oak senior Hallie Griffin use their phones to text friends for extra brainpower and check for Twitter updates in their search for the Medallion Wednesday night near Park Library. (Libby March/Staff Photographer)

“After the clue came out one of our ideas was to go to Abel Court,” Okemos junior Kevin Conlon said. “We looked at a map and realized Abel was a president that didn’t have a building named after him and he came after the other presidents that did.”

The president’s staff refers to Abel Court, which when viewed from above looks like a staff. Abel was CMU’s president in 1975. Abel Court is located off of Dennison Drive which is off of West Campus Drive. The team utilized Google Earth and campus maps to get a view from above that revealed the “presidents staff.”

“A lot of cars turned left onto Ellis Place so we thought we were going to the wrong place,” Conlon said. “We kept going and we realized that Abel was on our right so we turned onto that. We were the first ones there and I slammed on the breaks and we got out.”

After several minutes of wandering he stumbled upon a gray circle resembling the medallion featured in “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” He immediately called his roommate and Larzelere co-coordinator Kyle Smith.

“There was all this sand there and I remembered all the sand from the movie and from the first clue,” Conlon said. “Kyle got there and I reached into the sand and it was maybe two inches down. I reached in and found something and it was the bag holding that holds the medallion. Then everyone went nuts.”

Conlon and Smith returned back to Larzelere to a group of chanting and clapping Larzy residents and an enormous celebration ensued.

“We found it,” Smith said. “It’s a thrilling relief. It validates all the work we put in. To be right there and to see it being pulled out was exhilarating.”

For Holland Freshman Christian Genesky the medallion hunt will be an experience he won’t soon forget.

“It was a blast,” Genesky said. “I didn’t think I’d be that into it until I sat down and found these people that were having so much fun with it and I just got addicted.”

He said that the medallion hunt taught him a lot about the history of CMU and gave him an opportunity to make new friends in the hall.

“The main hunters weren’t really people that I hang out with but the medallion hunt really brought me closer to them. It was really fun,” he said. “I will absolutely participate next year.”

After five days of searching the Larzelere Hall Council team has won the sixth annual Homecoming Medallion Hunt securing them 25 points in the Maroon Cup standings, a $200 pizza party, and a year’s worth of bragging rights.