A delightful discovery at a timely tailgate

What a way to spend a weekend! Last Saturday, I found myself at the Lehigh-Liberty game in Lynchburg, Virginia, amid a crowd of about 300 spirited Mountain Hawk fans at one of a series of away tailgates we’ve been organizing. (In case you haven’t heard, we’ll be at Georgetown on 10/13, Holy Cross on 11/3 and here at Stabler Arena on 11/17 to watch The Rivalry on the big screen.

All in all it was a great day. The weather was spectacular, the Liberty fans were amazing, and LU (the good guys) scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter for a well deserved, come-from-behind 28-26 win over the Flames.

What made the day such a great success, in my mind, was not only the win on the field, but the chance to watch connections being made among the Lehigh alumni, parents and friends all around me. Take, for example, two alumni families that came to the tailgate. We welcomed the Melcherts: Norman (former philosophy professor and dean in our College of Arts and Sciences) and two of his sons, Andy ’83 and Steve ’86. I was able to introduce them to the Van De Putte family: Paul ’89 and his wife, Tracey ’90.

Turns out, the two families live and work close to each other, but hadn’t met before. They are already talking about ways to keep in touch, and will undoubtedly help us increase our alumni network and activity in southern Virginia.

We say all the time that Lehigh connections are everywhere, just waiting to be made. Helping them happen is what we do here in the Alumni Association. We do it through tailgates like the one at Liberty, regional events like happy hours and volunteer activities, on-campus celebrations like Homecoming, and athletics events like the upcoming National Invitation Tournament for basketball (watch for details to come). Even online events like our Mountain Talks bring alumni together for discourse and professional development.

Your Lehigh degree has already taken you places. The Alumni Association wants to help you continue your journey. Please join us to learn something new, meet some friends, and make connections that could take you even farther. After all, who knows who – or what – might be right down the road from you.