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The Eastern Echo Tuesday, July 15, 2025 | Print Archive
The Eastern Echo

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EMU students show their Homecoming week spirit

Homecoming week is here once again and 163 years of Eastern Michigan University tradition marches on into the year 2012. EMU has a lot of pride to show off and this week the campus will be in a state of celebration. There will be much excitement leading up to the Homecoming football game Oct. 6 against Kent State at Rynearson Stadium.

On Oct. 4, EMU Marketing will be sponsoring the TRUEMU Homecoming Block Party on the Student Center patio from 6-8 p.m. Simply attend and you could collect discounts and giveaways from businesses on the Eagle Discount Card Program.

Immediately following will be the TRUEMU Homecoming Pep Rally in University Park, where you can really show your school spirit and be with your fellow EMU students.

One of the more uniting events will be the Parade of Nations, happening Oct. 6 during the EMU Alumni and Friends Homecoming Tailgate at Rynearson Stadium, where we will rejoice in the diversity of EMU students’ home countries.

But why should you attend? Certainly if you feel you are incapable of conveying even minor expressions of school spirit, you wouldn’t want to be anywhere near these electrifying Homecoming activities. That’s where one could miss out. Even if you don’t feel like you’re the type of person to get hyped about a football game, does it still mean that you’re not proud of the school you are part of?

“School spirit can be an internal pride,” said EMU psychology major Natalie Rogers. “You don’t need to wear collegiate colors to have pride. I have a whole family lineage of relatives who went to EMU; people who I look up to and admire. I’m proud to be here in spirit of my connection to them.”

I’m sure many stories on campus resemble that of Roger’s and that you can feel the heart of the school through your connection to your familial past.

EMU has a long history, parallel with the historic town of Ypsilanti. Is our town simply a shadow of Ann Arbor or are we a perfected Mecca for personalities not enamored with the subtle exclusivity that clouds the University of Michigan campus? The students and professors at EMU are the salt of the earth, working for a life of personal achievement, whatever that means to each individual.

There’s a certain pride that surfaces when I’m driving behind a car that has a license plate framed in the familiar white and green. It’s the same feeling I get when I walk through the Student Center; passing by and glancing at the faces of my fellow EMU scholars and professors, each of them pioneers of their own life story.

We are all here for different reasons and we all come from different places, united in a desire to move forward. Whether you’re commuting from Downriver or living in a dorm on campus, there’s a bonding sentiment that we are the essence of EMU. Together, we make this college campus what it is.

That feeling of togetherness is a spirit that is valuable. We are the Eagles and our flock hails from Ypsilanti, Mich. Ten years from now, every one of us will look back and remember our times at EMU.

So I implore you, silent student, to get more involved in the spirit of your school. Show your professors appreciation for helping you learn and make a connection with that person you sit next to every day in your psychology 101 class. Whether I know you now or will meet you in the future, I consider you a part of my flock. In this spirit, I invite you all to wear green and white feathers during homecoming week to show that through our vast differences, we are birds of a feather.