Happy
40 Years, IPFW!
Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2004
Imagine the ultimate birthday party, complete with colorful balloons, juggling clowns, cake and candles, and — of course — all your favorite friends! To celebrate IPFW’s birthday in style, these special touches and more will be included in the kickoff event for the yearlong 40th anniversary celebration.
Kids and adults are invited to the birthday party on Tuesday, Sept. 14, beginning at 5 p.m. A spectacular lineup of entertainment is planned as partygoers enjoy the beautiful outdoors of the IPFW campus on the Walb Student Union plaza.
The party will begin with musical selections sung by local American Idol winners. The dance floor will open at 5:30 p.m. when the popular oldies band Spike and the Bulldogs takes the stage. Roving entertainers and clowns will add extra fun, especially for kids, as they create balloon animals and do yo-yo tricks, juggling acts, and magic tricks. Picnic food will be served beginning at 5 p.m.
At 6:45 p.m., IPFW will unveil and dedicate a new life-sized bronze mastodon statue — the university mascot. The party will continue in the Walb Union Ballroom with a performance by The Capitol Steps, a comic political sketch group, at 7:30 p.m. to open the university’s 2004–05 Omnibus Lecture Series.
After the lecture, audience members can taste local bakeries’ delicious anniversary confections — the party’s icing on the cake!
Partygoers may also enjoy a self-guided walking tour of special sites on the IPFW campus that provide links to the university’s history and stepping-stones for future campus enhancement. Maps will be available.
Later this year, the community is invited to other exciting 40th anniversary events such as Homecoming, a children’s funfest, the resurrection of Harbor Arbor Days, and a gala/auction. Also planned is Fort Wayne’s first-ever community-wide public art project — Mastodons on Parade.
We are proud to invite northeast Indiana to celebrate the university’s 40th anniversary. We hope you will join us as we commemorate our past, celebrate our present, and look forward to an exciting future in northeast Indiana.