By Josh Hughes
For the last six years, Western has put on an increasingly extravagant weekend for alumni and family during the third weekend of May. You may know of this event as the one day in the year when a giant zipline runs through the Old Main Lawn, complete with screaming adults and an array of families looking up astounded at the spectacle. Or, you may have noticed some of the dozens of ads and billboards around town these last few weeks with bold typeface spelling out “BACK 2 B’HAM”. While the weekend of events, occurring from May 18 to 21, is tailored for alumni looking to reunite with old classmates and see Bellingham through a new lens, there are dozens of events open to the public that anyone, including students, can attend.
Back 2 B’ham signifies one of the largest events of the school year on campus, providing a nice parallel to Lawnstock–the end of the year festival for students that takes place in early June. But while Lawnstock markets itself as an event for students, Back 2 B’Ham can seem daunting because of its rigorous advertising outside of campus, as though it’s not intended for anyone who currently attends Western. While alumni coming to the event are encouraged to register for $15 to get access to numerous special events that are specifically meant for them, there are also a plethora of events happening that students can get involved in either for free or a small cost.
After an opening ceremony of sorts on Thursday night, Friday kicks off the weekend’s main events with a faculty reading, a BFA artists’ talk and a wide range of evening events. The faculty reading, in VU 565 at 4 p.m., features poetry and prose reading from some of Western’s Creative Writing faculty including Suzanne Paola, Bruce Beasley, Brenda Miller, Lee Guylas and Kami Westhoff. The BFA artists’ talk, in the Western Gallery and also at 4 p.m., coincides with the senior art exhibition inside the gallery that opened just last week.
All events on Friday are inclusive for alumni, students and families alike, with a variety of performances and even a silent auction.
At the Majestic Ballroom on N Forest St., there will be a 1940s Mystery Dinner night at 5 p.m. hosted by Western’s own Viking Radio Theatre. Tickets cost $15 for students and faculty, and $25 for the general public.
At the same time in the VU MPR, Student Outreach Services (SOS) are hosting the 19th Annual Women of Color Empowerment Dinner and Silent Auction, an event that, in the words of the SOS, “serves to unify and create dialogue among students, staff, faculty, and community members to empower women from diverse backgrounds to step up as leaders in their colleges, communities and the world.” Likewise, tickets cost the same as the Mystery Dinner.
Beyond those two, there are several other events including: a documentary screening of “I Am Not Your Negro” at Pickford Film Center put on by Western Reads, a monthly night market on Commercial Street, a Dead Parrots Society improv show, a performance of Teague Parker’s senior project, a Guitars of Western show and two planetarium showings. The specifics can be found on Back 2 B’Ham’s website at http://wwu.edu/back2bellingham (if you’re looking for an exact countdown until the event as well, you’ll find that prominently cemented at the top of the site).
Saturday, however, is when things start to get out of control with a whopping 65 posted events on the website. At the risk of sounding too overwhelming, some of these events include a Red Square Carnival, Western Relay for Life, a kayaking tour, a bird walk in the arb, a music festival in Fairhaven College, a tour of the outdoor sculpture collection, an Ethnic Student Center night market and, yes, the zipline. All these events and more can also be found on the Back 2 B’ham website, which includes a short, informative blurb about each and every event.
There’s even more planned for Sunday, but at this point there’s a sense of futility in explaining more specifics. Whether you’re a Western alum, a current student or just an inhabitant of Bellingham, there should be something for you at this weekend’s Back 2 B’ham bonanza.