Happy February, readers. February is here and brings a lot to celebrate. This month we celebrate Black History Month, Valentines Day, President’s Day and more! On campus, we are celebrating the start of the season for baseball and softball, and both Men’s and Women’s basketball seasons are well underway and the Smith Fine Arts Series had their online auction from Feb. 1 – 5. Theater students have been busy rehearsing for “The Laramie Project,” which will debut in March in Rice Auditorium. Things are busy around campus and it’s great seeing all the action happening. To keep up on performances, lectures, events and athletics, check the WOU calendar. 

It’s gearing up to a busy spring! We are busy planning welcome receptions for the New VP of Advancement, Katie Wojke and President Peters, Giving Day is on March 7 and there’s a handful of other events happening in March and April. On March 14 we will be in Keizer for our monthly After Hours event at Sammies Keizer. Stop in for a beverage and say hello. Welcome receptions for Katie and Jesse are currently planned in Salem, Eugene and Portland and we will also be traveling to Southern Oregon, Eastern Oregon, California, Texas, Hawaii, Washington and Idaho in the near future. If you live in a region you you’d like us to visit, send an email to alumni@wou.edu. 

January was wet and cold but full of activity. On January 8th the alumni board welcomed 6 new members to the crew during their winter board meeting and retreat. Please welcome: 

• Antonia Scholerman ’21 
• Mike Lynch ’72
• Don McBride ’85
• Kathy Martin-Harris ’96
• Danita Harris ’16 
• Lisa Cejka ’91 

The annual Men’s Basketball Alumni game and event was on January 21. A big group of alumni from all eras, six decades to be exact, came together to watch a close Wolves win and enjoy a meal, drinks and remarks at the Independence Hotel afterwards. The event was hosted by alum Lance Marr and during the game his brother, Rob Marr, presented Randi Lydum with a check for $96,000 of fundraised dollars to support Men’s Basketball. This annual event is always a blast and it’s wonderful to see alumni from so many decades present. Thank you to the Marr family for keeping the event going and helping our basketball program. 

Just a week later on January 28, we celebrated the 50th Anniversary of Title XI prior to the Women’s basketball game at New PE. Alumni from Women’s Basketball came back to enjoy beverages, snacks and see one another and celebrate Title XI. Current WOU female athletes joined the festivities also along with coaches, alumni, staff and friends. It was a great day to be a Wolf.