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F - Fun Activities - There were fun activities planned for the entire weekend. Some of these included a kite decorating contest, Founders'-edition Bingo, as well as, the standard Mountain Day games! This year they added many activities for the Founder's Cup Challenge. Each class year competed in various activities, like volleyball, and the dizzy bat relay. Congratulations to the Class of 2013 for winning the Founder's Cup Challenge!
O - Open House in Cowles Hall - Elmira College students and members of the surrounding community were all invited to attend the Cowles Hall Open House. There were tours of the building and reenactments. There was also a presentation on Tommy Hilfiger, who is one of Elmira College's Trustees and who grew up in the Elmira area. His sister Betsy Hilfiger discussed their childhood in Elmira and her brother's first successes taking place in Upstate New York.
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U - 'U Gotta Regatta - The standard Mountain Day tradition of racing across the Puddle in small rafts helped lessen the shock of the changes in the Mountain Day protocol. Students were still able to race in groups of four from one side of the Puddle to the other using no equipment other than the raft and their arms and legs to propel them. Luckily, we had nice weather this weekend, which made the race more enjoyable and less frigid.
N - Name that Began Elmira's Fame - "In 1855 when Elmira began, it was founded by a wise and worthy man. He thought perfection would be designed if women and books combined. He had a black cloak, a very quiet appeal, confidence and a rare ideal. Simeon Benjamin is the name that began Elmira's fame. In the years gone by we have grown to be equal to me academically. And as our founder's dream unfolds, we see what the future holds. He had a black cloak, a very quiet appeal, confidence and a rare ideal. Simeon Benjamin is the name that began Elmira's fame." (Lyrics by Fredricka Simon Goodman '58 and Margaret Holt Parish '58)
D - Dean Martha Anstice Harris was the first person to institute a Mountain Day. The Elmira College Archives state that many of the students were trying to get over an influenza epidemic, so Dean Harris cancelled classes the night before October 23, 1918. That next day, the students went on hikes to help them recuperate from their sickness. The hiking trips are still part of Mountain Day as we know it today.
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Thank you to everyone who helped make the 2012 Founders' Weekend adn Mountain Day a success!**Photo Credit to Amanda LeBoeuf' '13
