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Sunday, October 8, 2017

Big Red Weekend 2017....tired and energized.

What was all that happy energy about in Granville this weekend?  Three words: Big Red Weekend! And for me- Family Leadership Council!  Yes living in our alma mater's hometown gives us wonderful opportunity to connect with Denison friends returning to campus.  Weekends like this take it a whole new level.  Add my work with current (and past) family and parents and I'm all the more connected to the opportunity to engage with outstanding Denisonians.  When they're parents and classmates- wham- all is right on Newark-Granville Road.  I should be exhausted but I'm tiredly energized.

Make new friends and keep the old, one is silver and the other gold.  I looked around the bar at the Granville Inn to see for 1990 classmates that are also P'21, three classmates back for BRW, a handful of other great alums I'm getting to know better thanks to their return to Denison as parents, and some fun alums back for affinity reunions.  Add the spouses of many of these said folks and it is a recipe for the perfect night! A night that flew, a night that had me making my way around the bar doing my best to connect and soak in these opportunities.  This was just one block of time that was repeated.

The whole weekend was this way. On Friday, the Family Leadership Council had fifty parents participate in important meetings. What a delight and honor to have these volunteers help the college. My role is rewarding, challenging, fun, special and one I'm lucky to have.  I am resonsible for the invitation to the council and the programming. I have many partners to thank for executing a successful day.  Our goal is to deepen the relationships- the relationship of the parent to the college- they are amazing Denisonians! Also to deepen the college's relationship to the parents.  BRW FLC 2017 met its goal.

It actually kicked off on Thursday with two 90 era amazing alums back. We met their kids, soaked in their engagement and caught up around the table. Ahhhh! Then the weekend provided a number of settings for introductions, reintroductions, witness to parent/student bonds and processing and a fair amount of nostalgic reminiscing!   Life is figure eights and BRW is full of observations and this year's convergence takes it to a new level.  I remember my parents weekends so very well. How we're now here welcoming our fiends as parents, makes me smile and shake my head.  We were just students.  Empathetic nostalgia has surrounded me all weekend. Just walking chapel walk with students I could feel their happy anticipation of parent arrivals.  Driving through town seeing the packed cars with farewell hugs took me right back to that place of meloncoly.  Happy reunions and reflection of just the past few weeks and decisions to make Denison home fodder and starting point of conversations.  This moved to just great talks and analysis about why Denison is in the place it is- strong, different but similar.  Seeing and meeting our friends kids, good kids is remarkable and has an impact to inspire the blog post.

Of course being in relationship, being family allows us to reflect on what could improve, what is missing.  Energizing is the suggestions stem from care and concern. The college knows and wants to grow and evolve the right way. Our Unlocking Potential campaign is in progress and launches publicly next week....time to rest up and regroup to prepare! Things are not perfect for all and I do my best to help.  I value the trust to do so. I value the assistance of colleagues to do so.

Thanks to all who infused this state of happy exhaustion.  I didn't see everyone and I needed to see everyone for more time, deeper conversation.  Until next time Denisonians and until then I look forward to the week and the alums and parents returning to Denison and Granville, making my life on NG Road so very satisfying.

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