Biola Weekend, which occurred Oct. 14-15, merged two events — Parent and Family Weekend and Alumni Homecoming — for the first time. The campus festivities, including a food festival, concert and 5K run/walk were heavily attended by two hundred alumni and four hundred parents.

“It was a great success,” said Rick Bee, senior director of the alumni and friends department. “Our numbers were up for parents and our numbers were up for alumni, and we had quite a few grandparents who joined us, so it was a really good weekend.”

Events for students, parents and alumni

The events started on Friday with the dedication of the new, fully funded Talbot School of Theology East building and tours of the new facilities. Following that, people gathered at the Sutherland Sizzle, which was held in honor of the Talbot dedication. Families and alumni enjoyed chicken and biscuits at this event, which Samuel Sutherland, Biola’s fifth president, originally started.

Associated Students planned a food fair and festival for dinner. Bon Appétit catering service, which modeled the event after food trucks, provided booths with different types of gourmet carnival cuisine. This pre-concert event featured a jumping castle, cotton candy and face painting. Booths by non-profit vendors that support different causes around the world also made an appearance.

In the evening, many people attended a concert featuring Tyrone Wells. He played a variety of songs from his new and older albums. Alumni, students and parents enjoyed listening to him, and local bands also played at the concert.

“The concert was awesome,” junior psychology major Melissa Roszhart said. “I really enjoyed Tyrone Wells. His songs have such a positive message and he really enjoys what he sings and the messages that he sends.”

An alumni coffee house was also held during the evening in the library courtyard, which was transformed into a lounge area with fireplaces. Biola alumni gathered around the fire pits and drank coffee while reconnecting with each other. Specialty coffees were served, and the event received a good attendance.

Corey runs in 5K

A 5K run/walk took place on Saturday morning, which raised awareness and $10,000 in support for holoprosencephaly, a rare congenital brain disorder. Biola president Barry Corey participated, as well as alumni and current students. As the runners came in, an alumni worship band played.

“The [5K] was cool,” senior cinema and media arts major Erika Gonzales said. “My best friend ran it and it was nice to see her finish.”

Immediately after the 5K, a brunch with university president occurred on Metzger Lawn. Corey outlined the vision of Biola and talked about the new, exciting things happening around campus.

“President Corey does such a great job with both parents and alumni,” Bee said. “He had actually run in the 5K in the morning, and went over from the run to the brunch. He always speaks from the heart and people love his passion.”

Biola’s growth and mission

The T3 Talks, named to represent three values from Biola’s mission statement (truth, transformation, and testimony) met in the afternoon and were a new addition this year. They were modeled after the Technology Entertainment and Design Talks, which is a global series of conferences put on by the Sapling Foundation, a private non-profit foundation designed to further the power of ideas. Likewise, the T3 Talks centered on intelligent discussions by high profile Christian communicators from world news, business, film, missions and arts divisions.

The finale dinner, which included entertainment and information about the vision for Biola’s growth, also featured a silent auction. Some of the fifteen items auctioned off included lunch with Corey, a family pack of basketball tickets, Biola sports memorabilia and a Palm Springs vacation donated by a member of the alumni board. Fifteen hundred dollars were raised, which went to scholarships for students.

“I think we’re going to do this again next year,” Bee said. “We hope that we can build on the momentum gained from this year’s event and we like the model and combination of the groups. The nice thing about the event this year was that it was a great combined effort between the alumni board, the parents council and the Associated Students offices. When you can combine forces like that, it makes for a great university event.”