CITY READIES FOR SOUTHEAST UNIVERSITY'S FAMILY WEEKEND

Two upcoming celebrations at Southeast Missouri State University will be packing crowds into Cape Girardeau.

And the city's business owners are more than happy to welcome them.

The university's Family Weekend starts Friday and continues through Sunday.

A variety of events have been scheduled at the university, including a concert by the Village People Saturday night after the football game.

Diane Sides, assistant director of university relations and the coordinator of Family Weekend, said there's no way to know exactly how many people will attend the events.

"But it'll be a big crowd," she said. "There's not any one event that everyone comes to. Some go to the Greek homes. Some are in the residence halls. They just come and go. We do know that all the hotel rooms in town are booked. Plus, the football game that weekend is always the best-attended football game of the year."

Sides said the university used to schedule a variety of events for Friday nights, but soon learned better.

"We've discovered that the students grab their parents and say, `let's go to the mall and let's go out to eat.'"

The university's Homecoming celebration Oct. 10 and 11, will bring about 10,000 people into town "by the time you put everybody in that has anything to do with it," said Jane Stacy, director of alumni development at the university.

The parade, various reunions, football game and other events pull lots of people into Cape Girardeau, Stacy said.

"One of the things people find strange is there's so many small reunions that we don't put into our program, but we just don't have the space," she said.

The celebrations give the university a chance to shine, Sides said.

"There's just no better time to visit the campus. It's just gorgeous," she said.

The city also gets a chance to sparkle for all its visitors, said Mary Miller, director of the Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"It's always a boost for Cape Girardeau, and it gives us an excellent opportunity to showcase the campus," Miller said.

Bringing so many people into the community means good things for tourism sites, merchants and restaurants, she said.

"By Family Weekend, a lot of the students have been there long enough that when the parents get here, they can say, `I need some new sheets' or `I need something special for my room.' I've been out during Family Weekend, and I see a lot of shopping going on," Miller said.

Randy Kluge, manager of the Drury Lodge in Cape Girardeau, said the back-to-back celebrations are a boon in his business.

"We're going to have a good weekend," he said. "We need a whole lot more of these events in this market. Whenever there's an event at their the Show Me Center or SEMO, those kinds of events help fill up the hotels."

FAMILY WEEKEND SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Friday

4 p.m. -- Registration begins

4:30 to 6:15 -- Towers and Greek cafeterias open for dinner

7 p.m. -- movie "Trois Hommes et un Couffin" at University Center Program Lounge

Saturday

Throughout the morning:

-- "Visions of Science" exhibit open at the University Museum.

-- Student organization exhibits and entertainment set up on Academic Terraces.

-- Minority Family Weekend Open Forum at University Center Missouriana-Indian rooms.

-- 10:30 a.m. University president Dr. Dale Nitzschke welcomes families in the University Center Lobby

-- 11:50 a.m. to 1 p.m. Picnic lunch on Academic Terraces and entertainment by juggler Bill Fry

-- 4 p.m. Intercollegiate volleyball at Houck Field House featuring Southeast v. Tennesee State.

-- 5 p.m. Football, featuring Southeast v. Eastern Illinois University at Houck Stadium. At halftime, Southeast players' parents will be recognized.

-- The Village People will perform immediately after the football game.

-- 8 to 11 p.m. "Family Night at the Coffee House," third floor lounge at Meyers Hall, featuring free tea and coffee.

-- 9 p.m. Phi Beta Sigma and the Office of Minority Affairs present "The Night the Stars Came Out" talent show.

Sunday

-- 9:30 to 11 a.m., "Breakfast with the President" at the University Center.

-- 11 a.m. Catholic Campus Ministries Mass will be celebrated on Academic Terraces.