By LEIGH C. MERRIFIELD
News & Journal Editor
Fairmont State University will celebrate its Homecoming
event this weekend with lots of activities, beginning with a
bonfire on Thursday evening and concluding with what is
hoped to be a win at its Homecoming football game on
Saturday afternoon when the Falcons host Alderson
Broaddus University at Duvall-Rosier Field.
Homecoming is always an exciting time when many
alumni return to the Fairmont campus, and this year the
University will honor some very deserving members of its
‘family’. On Friday afternoon, an Alumni Celebration will
be held at which time the 2020-2021 Alumni Award
Winners will be honored. Honorees will include: Porter
Stiles (1981) and Rocco Fucillo (1984) – Outstanding
Alumnus; Devanna Corley (1997) – Outstanding Alumna;
Randal D. Farley (1978) and Col. Robert W. Vincent,
USAF, ret. (1969) – Alumnus of Achievement; Kathy
Hypes (1986) – Alumna of Achievement; Eric Moffa
(2005) and Frankie Wilson (2015) – Outstanding Young
Alumnus; Stacey Bowers (2007) – Outstanding Young
Alumna; and Charles L. Reese (1966) – Lifetime
Achievement Award.
What better way to foster Falcon Family enthusiasm than
a parade! And this year, Fairmont State students and
alumni, along with local community residents and all
Falcon supporters will be able to enjoy the return of the
Homecoming Parade that will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday
morning The parade route will commence at Palatine Park
and continue to Locust Avenue.
The University is proud to name its parade marshals Matt
Swain (Fairmont State Chief of Police and Emergency
Management Director) and Lloyd White (Marion County
Health Department Administrator), two individuals who
worked diligently to safely guide the campus and the entire
community through the challenging times brought about by
the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Fairmont State University President Mirta M. Martin
stated, “These gentlemen have been on the front lines of
our COVID response, and each of us has benefited from
their insight, vision and hard work. I urge everyone who
attends the parade to demonstrate our gratitude to these two
men for their tireless efforts to keep the Falcon Family as
well as our community safe.”
Swain was tasked with overseeing the University’s
COVID-19 testing protocols, reporting exposures to, and
confirmed cases of, the virus, and organizing ongoing
campus vaccine clinics, among other duties.
Swain said, “Throughout the pandemic, the University
has acted out of an abundance of caution to protect our
campus and surrounding communities, while also
providing a sense of normalcy to the Falcon Family. Our
Task Force has worked tirelessly to ensure our
Homecoming activities may resume, and we look forward
to safely welcoming our community and alumni back to
campus for this long-awaited celebration.”
White, in addition to conducting community-wide
testing, surveillance and vaccination efforts throughout
Marion County, has worked closely with Swain to provide
guidance and support to help protect Fairmont State
students, faculty and staff.
White commented, “The health and safety of our
community has been at the forefront of our minds over the
last 18 months. Though navigating this pandemic has been
a challenge, the cooperation for Matt Swain, as well as the
entire campus community at Fairmont State, has been
instrumental in our ability to continually adapt to the
circumstances at hand.”
Homecoming celebrations on university campuses are a
tradition for students and alumni, reveling in pomp and
circumstance as well as merriment and excitement. The
Falcon Family and its supporters will gather this weekend
to commemorate this tradition. Memories will be made
and revisited … school spirit will be abundant … and
maroon and white will be the predominant colors this
weekend in Fairmont!