Northwestern to host Raider Days celebration

Northwestern College will celebrate Raider Days, the college’s annual Homecoming and Parents Weekend, Oct. 2–3 with traditions such as the Red Raider Road Race and Morning on the Green carnival as well as Red Raider football.

During Raider Days, eight classes (2015, 2010, 2005, 1995, 1990, 1985, 1975 and 1965) will celebrate reunions at a Saturday tailgate picnic on campus. Northwestern will also dedicate its new Ron and Peg Juffer Fieldhouse at 4:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2, before hosting the Friday evening Legacy Celebration Banquet to honor college supporters and the 2015 distinguished alumni: Ron De Jong ’71, Orange City; Dr. Janet (Hassebroek) Guthmiller ’84, Lincoln, Neb; and Marjorie (Hartog) Vander Aarde ’56, ’58, Great Falls, Mont.

The majority of Raider Days events are on Saturday, Oct. 3, starting with the 22nd annual Red Raider Road Race at 9 a.m. Pre-registration is $20/runner and $15/walker; cost is $25 the day of the race. Visit nwciowa.edu/raider-road-race for registration details.

Alumni softball and baseball games will be played in the college’s new Juffer Fieldhouse Saturday morning at 9 and 11 a.m., respectively.

From 9:30 a.m. to noon, enjoy Morning on the Green in the center of campus. The carnival will include games and prizes; proceeds support student clubs and organizations. At 10 a.m., students’ parents can check in and receive a schedule of the day’s events at the Ramaker Center, and alumni are invited to enjoy coffee with emeriti faculty and staff in the library’s Vogel Community Room.

An athletic Hall of Fame luncheon at 11 a.m. in the Vermeer South Dining Room will celebrate 2015 Hall of Fame inductees Nathan Jansen ’09 (football), Ethan Miller ’03 (baseball), and Randa (Hulstein) Poel ’10 (volleyball and basketball); Barnabas Award winner Anna (Anderson) Moser ’10 (basketball); and coaches of the year Karl Bahrke ’79 (track, Kingsley-Pierson/Woodbury Central), Jay McKinstrey ’86 (football, Pella High School), and Aaron Thomas ’02 (cross country, Gilbert High School).

A tailgate picnic lunch will be served on the campus green from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The cost is $6 for adults and $4 for kids ages 6 to 10; children five and under eat free. The Raider football team will kick off against Morningside at 1:30 p.m. on Korver Field.

A family-friendly play, “Princess Amanda and the Dragon,” takes the DeWitt Theatre stage at 4 p.m. Tickets are free for alumni and can be reserved at nwciowa.edu/tickets starting Sept. 22. Day-of-show tickets will also be available at the door.

The Northwestern College music department will present a free concert at 7 p.m. in Christ Chapel, followed by a reception for the parents of students involved in music at Northwestern.

All alumni and friends of Northwestern as well as students’ family members are invited to Raider Days. For more information, visit nwciowa.edu/raider-days, or contact the Raider Days event staff at 712-707-7134 or events@nwciowa.edu.