WEST PLAINS, Mo. – In 2013, Missouri State University-West Plains will celebrate 50 years of providing post-secondary educational opportunities to south-central Missouri, and to mark the occasion, university officials will begin a year-long celebration with a reunion and concert Feb. 15 at the West Plains Civic Center.
All friends, alumni and current students, and former and current faculty and staff members of the university are invited to this event featuring a nationally known band with local ties, Ha Ha Tonka, said Assistant Director of Development Joe Kammerer. A social hour with light hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar is planned for 7 to 8 p.m., and the band will take the stage at 8. In addition, 50 items will be given away to those who attend, he said.
“In 1963, a group of area residents, spearheaded by local state representative Granvil Vaughan, embarked on a mission to bring higher education to south-central Missouri to give area residents the opportunity of a better life for themselves and their communities. The result of their efforts is what we now call Missouri State University-West Plains,” Chancellor Drew Bennett said.
“Thanks to their foresight and vision, thousands of individuals have been able to obtain the training and education they need to find good-paying jobs to support their families and to bring much needed industrial and economic development to this region. Needless to say, that’s something worth celebrating each day of the year, and we’d like to encourage everyone whose life has been touched in some way by the West Plains campus to come and help us celebrate on Feb. 15,” he added.
Tickets to the reunion and concert are $5 each and available through the West Plains Civic Center box office, 110 St. Louis St., from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays; call 417-256-8123 to order by phone. Or, tickets can be ordered through Ticketmaster.com.
Several other 50th anniversary-themed activities and events are already on the university’s 2013 calendar, Kammerer said. On Sept. 12, university officials will host a 50th Anniversary Gala Dinner at the civic center as a fundraiser for the campus, and on Sept. 16, officials will host an anniversary celebration at the Smith-London Centennial Bell Tower on Franklin Street just west of the Lybyer Technology Center that will include a short ceremony, picnic and historic 50th anniversary photo. In addition, many other events held annually at the university will have a 50th anniversary theme, he said.
Anniversary activities were developed by an honorary steering committee whose members, many of whom have strong ties to the campus, provided inspiration, direction and vision for the celebration. They include Karyn Vaughan, Peggy Kissinger, Allison Smith, Carol Silvey, Dr. Fred Czerwonka, Dr. Marvin O. Looney, Dr. Marvin Fowler, Marvin Green, Bob Manning, Mary Sheid, David M. Gohn, Tom Marhefka, the late West Plains Mayor Joe Evans and current Mayor Jack Pahlmann. They were assisted by several subcommittees that included community members, faculty, staff and students.
“We’d like to thank the members of the 50th anniversary honorary steering committee and the subcommittees for their hard work and dedication in developing a program of events that will help us celebrate our ‘golden’ moment,” Kammerer said. “Their input was extremely valuable in developing activities that can be enjoyed by all and very much appreciated.”
For more information about Missouri State University-West Plains’ 50th anniversary celebrations and events, call the development office at 417-255-7240.