Alumni celebrate 50 year reunion
About 40 Central Michigan University alumni gathered in the Powers ballroom for the class of 1961 50 year reunion brunch.
The brunch kicked off Homecoming Weekend Saturday morning. CMU hosts a 50 year class reunion annually.
Annie Sanders, assistant director of alumni relations, said CMU hosted summer reunions in the past. She said they wanted campus to be open for alumni to revisit.
"We got a lot of calls asking for it to be during homecoming weekend," Sanders said. "It's the best time to come back."
Alumni Nancy Watkins didn't come to the reunion for the Homecoming events. She said the school has changed significantly in the last 50 years.
"I just want to wander around campus," Watkins said.
For some alumni, the reunion isn't the first time they've been back. Alumni Donald and Evlon Wilson come to watch football games at least twice a year.
Donald said they are impressed with how much the school has grown since they graduated.
"There were only 2,200 people here when I first started," Donald said. "You knew everybody."
Evlon agreed things have changed with CMU's expansion.
"You knew all the professors, you knew all the students," she said.
After brunch, the alumni sat outside Powers Hall to watch the Homecoming Parade.
The reunion continued with the alumni village tailgate near Rose Ponds before the football game against Eastern Michigan University.
