Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 20, 1993 TAG: 9306200074
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: E7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LESLIE TAYLOR STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
HokieFest '93.
Century Plaza in downtown Roanoke was converted into a Virginia Tech fest of sorts, courtesy of the Roanoke chapter of the Virgina Tech Alumni Association. The event was billed as part fun, part public relations.
"Who else but a bunch of Hokies," Tom Brown asked, "would be willing to stand in the middle of a concrete jungle in the heat and talk about Virginia Tech?"
Brown, associate director of Tech's alumni association, said big Hokie gatherings have been held for several years in three other areas of the state where there are large concentrations of Tech alumni - Richmond, Northern Virginia and Tidewater. Four thousand have been identified in the Roanoke area alone.
Saturday's event was the Roanoke chapter's first, which may have accounted for the small turnout. While other chapters promote their events as pure fun, Roanoke's included some information about the university's contributions to the Roanoke area.
"We wanted to avoid sports only," said Barry Simmerman, a Roanoke chapter member who helped plan the event. "We wanted to get a wider focus. There is so much going on between the two areas."
Booths displayed Tech's presence in the Roanoke area, including the Hotel Roanoke and Convention Center, the proposed "smart highway" linking Blacksburg to Interstate 81, the Roanoke Valley Graduate Center in downtown Roanoke and the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service.
But some alumni who paid $10 to attend the event said they were there merely out of allegiance to their alma mater. Others wanted to re-establish ties to the university.
"I support my school," said Richard Winstead, of Roanoke. "I'm a die-hard alum. I'm interested in what they do."
by CNB