Memories of concerts, films and events in the storied 51-year history of the student-run University of Colorado at Boulder Program Council will be shared April 2 and April 3 when current and former event organizers gather at the university for a weekend reunion.
About 180 CU-Boulder Program Council members from the 1960s through today will meet for a 6 p.m. reception April 2 at the Millennium Harvest House followed on April 3 by tours and a dinner and dance in the University Memorial Center's Glenn Miller Ballroom. The public is welcome at the April 2 reception, while the other events are for reunion members only.
J.C. Ancell, recently retired associate director of the CU-Boulder University Memorial Center, orchestrated the reunion along with current adviser Leasa Weimer and Program Council special events coordinator Erin Kieft. Ancell worked with many of the organizers during his 34-year career at the UMC.
"I have had a wonderful time reconnecting with old friends from past decades," Ancell said. "These people were like family to me, and I am thrilled to be able to see them and catch up with their lives."
An event planner for Walt Disney Co., a Dolby sound engineer, a California firefighter and rocker Huey Lewis' stage manager will be among the scores of Program Council alumni in attendance, according to Ancell. "Lots of people are traveling from New York, but the biggest contingent of non-Coloradoans is from California," he said, adding that people are coming from all over Colorado.
Allowing current Program Council members to meet their predecessors is an important goal of the reunion, Kieft said. "I think that current students will be inspired to meet these alums who brought Program Council to the nation's attention," she said. "Many of these people are still involved in the event or entertainment business, and the stories I'm hearing of their PC days are amazing."
During the last half-century, Program Council brought bands like the Dave Matthews Band, The Grateful Dead, Rolling Stones, The Who, The Doobie Brothers, Fleetwood Mac and many others to campus for sold-out concerts at campus venues including Folsom Field, Macky Auditorium, Mary Rippon Theater and Club 156. The council also continues to operate an acclaimed movie series.
Established in 1953 when the UMC building opened, the Program Council remains a student-run organization dedicated to bringing quality entertainment to the Boulder campus and community.
The reunion will feature some organized activities and displays in the Glenn Miller Ballroom of memorabilia including Trivia Bowl trophies, concert T-shirts, tickets and backstage passes. Though there will be lots of photos, posters and memories, organizers said the biggest attraction will be the old friendships forged through a unique and successful organization.
"We feel that it is important to recognize the hundreds of CU alumni who volunteered at Program Council over the last 50 years to establish this as one of the foremost student programming organizations in the nation," Kieft said.
For more information, visit the CU-Boulder Program Council Web site at .