IT staffers pitch in to help another Texas university after devastating fire
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Just for Fun
I was flipping channels one night last week when I came across live footage of a fire on the campus of Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) in San Antonio. In the fire, the school’s Main Building — a beautiful building, in some ways similar to Baylor’s Old Main — suffered a lot of damage, including the loss of one of its two main spires and also part of the roof. (Thankfully, no one was injured.) Built in 1895, Main Building holds classrooms, dorm rooms, a cafeteria and much of the campus’ computer infrastructure.
Recognizing the need, Baylor’s IT department jumped in to help, donating 30 desktop computers and all accessories to the OLLU. Daniel Iturbe and Joshua Ogden, both members of Baylor’s IT staff, made the six-hour round trip to deliver the computers, which will be used in a computer lab that replaces one damaged in the fire.
Sic ’em, Baylor staff, for helping another university in need!
Former softball standout’s health scare rallied Baylor family
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Just for Fun, Alumni, Athletics
Baylor fans know Cristin Vitek as the softball pitcher who struck out an NCAA-record 28 batters in a 16-inning 1-0 win during the 2004 NCAA Regional — the exceptional athlete seen in this picture. But all her athletic achievements meant nothing earlier this year when she spent three weeks in the hospital, her family worried at times if she would even survive.
Thankfully, she is now on the road to recovery and was healthy enough to throw out the first pitch before Wednesday night’s softball game. The Baylor Lariat and Waco Tribune-Herald each ran nice features on what she’s been through; the Viteks shared how the Baylor family immediately sprung into action with prayers for Cristin’s health, plus phone calls, text messages and e-mails of encouragement.
It’s so great to see the Baylor community banding around a brother or sister in their time of need. And in this case, it’s great to see Cristin back up and headed towards full health.
Sic ’em, Cristin, and sic ’em, Baylor family!
Diadeloso 2008
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Photo Galleries, Just for Fun, Student life
Baylor students, faculty and staff celebrated Diadeloso 2008 on Thursday with the usual tournament games, but also with increased community involvement from on-campus student organizations and Waco-area businesses.
This year’s event marked the 74th annual Diadeloso, as the tradition dates back to the first “play day” in the spring of 1934. To put that in perspective, that same spring, Bonnie and Clyde were still on the run, and Shirley Temple was just preparing for her first starring film role.
Click here for a photo gallery from this year’s Diadeloso, covering everything from tug of war to the Dia Dog Show. And don’t forget to find the Dia events being held in your city in the coming weeks!
Sic ’em, Bears!
Happy Diadeloso!
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Just for Fun, Alumni, Student life
Today is Diadeloso, so we’re out enjoying the festivities with the rest of campus. Check back next week for a photo gallery from today’s activities. And if you’re not in Waco, visit the Baylor Network website for more on a Diadeloso celebration near you — San Antonio, Austin and San Diego, April 26; Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston, May 3.
Sic ’em on this, The Day of the Bear!
Vote for Bruiser!
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Just for Fun
Baylor mascot Bruiser is in the Final Four in the finals!
RedEye, a free daily newspaper in Chicago put out by the Chicago Tribune, has been running a bracket contest based on Internet voting to determine “the best mascot of the NCAA Tournament” during March Madness. Baylor’s Bruiser knocked off Purdue’s “Purdue Pete,” Xavier’s “D’Artagnan,” West Virginia’s “Mountaineer,” and Western Kentucky’s “Big Red” to make it to the Final Four.
Now, Bruiser squares off against Stanford’s “Tree.” Click here to vote, but hurry — voting ends at noon on Friday. Voting for the National Championship will begin Friday afternoon.
Friday update: Bruiser beat Stanford’s “Tree” and now faces South Alabama’s “Southpaw” with the title on the line. Click here to vote!
Sic ’em, Bruiser!
Baby Bears visit campus for Easter egg hunt
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Photo Galleries, Just for Fun, Student life
Thursday afternoon, over a hundred children descended on Founders Mall for the annual Kappa Kappa Gamma Easter Egg Hunt. Those kids were sleuths, too; the dozens of eggs the ladies hid were all found in less than five minutes! We’ve compiled a photo gallery of the kids’ hunt for you to enjoy. Happy Easter!
Sic ’em, baby Bear egg hunters!
Baylor’s new buildings, 1960s edition
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Photo Galleries, Just for Fun
Students at Baylor have benefited from a rush of new campus buildings over the past decade or so, but did you realize there was a similar “building boom” in the 1950s and 1960s? Click here for a photo gallery of artists’ renderings of some familiar campus landmarks, followed by pictures of what those buildings look like today. Try to guess the building based on the rendering; if you get stumped, click “Captions” at the bottom right of the page and the building’s name will appear on the slide.
Look for more on the opportunities Baylor’s recent “growing season” has given students in the new issue of Baylor Magazine, arriving in homes this week.
Sic ’em, Baylor building beneficiaries!
Contemporary art on display at Martin Museum
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Just for Fun, Alumni
For those of you planning to visit campus on or before March 1, I highly recommend stopping by the Martin Museum of Art in the Hooper-Schaefer Fine Arts Center.
Marc Burckhardt’s (BA ‘86) and Mike Benny’s contemporary illustrations and paintings are featured in Gallery 1. Chances are likely that you will see some familiar pieces, as their works have been commissioned by clients such as Volkswagen, Rolling Stone, TIME, New Yorker, Major League Baseball and even Baylor Magazine (click to see that sample). Some of Burckhardt’s work is held in the private collections of Oprah Winfrey, Ralph Lauren and the late Johnny Cash. Sony Records commissioned the Johnny Cash work shown here, which is on display at Martin Museum.
Fans of contemporary photography can view the works of Amy Holmes George in Gallery 2. To view the artistic prowess of our current students and faculty, come see the Annual Art Student Exhibition and Studio Faculty Exhibition on display March 27 through April 16.
The museum’s exhibitions are free and open to the public unless specified, thanks in part to the generous support of the Martin Museum Art Angels and the Sue & Ted Getterman Endowed Fund. Visit www.baylor.edu/martinmuseum for hours of operation and more info about exhibitions on display throughout the year.
Sic ’em, Marc!
Alumni band featured on iTunes
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Just for Fun, Alumni
Each week, the folks at Apple’s iTunes Music Store pick a song that they label as a “Discovery Download,” usually one from an up-and-coming singer or group, and give it away as a free download. This week’s Discovery Download is “All That Matters,” by Addison Road — a group made up of mostly Baylor alums.
Lead singer Jenny Simmons, her husband and guitarist Ryan, guitarist Ryan Gregg and bassist Travis Lawrence each graduated from Baylor about five years ago. After starting out playing at Common Grounds, the group headed to Nashville and then Dallas, leading worship at various locations while trying to break into the industry. Next month, Addison Road will release its first album with INO Records, a label that also features the likes of Caedmon’s Call, Mercy Me and Chris Rice.
The band’s sound is definitely right up my alley; check it out now on iTunes! (The song is free through early next week.)
Sic ’em, Addison Road!
Spontaneous show of spirit
Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in : Just for Fun, Student life, AthleticsI was impressed to read this morning in the Waco Tribune-Herald that a crowd of about 200 fans, mostly students, gathered on the spur of the moment at the Ferrell Center — despite rain and temperatures around 40 degrees — to welcome home the men’s basketball team bus when it arrived back from College Station. Keep in mind that the five overtimes meant the team didn’t get back until early Thursday morning — around 1:45 a.m. A member of the crowd recorded the bus’ arrival; here it is, a nice showing of spontaneous campus spirit.
Sic ’em, Bears!
