Legacy Day 2019

Legacy Day 2019 took place Saturday, April 13. The anticipated rain held off, and the Alumni Association welcomed back more than 300 alumni, family members and legacy participants. Legacy Day is a wonderful opportunity for alumni and their families to come back to post and enjoy a day of VMI fun and fellowship. For the second consecutive year, this annual event brought more people back to post than we have ever had in the history of Legacy Day. This event provides an excellent opportunity for alumni with children to reconnect or stay in contact with the Institute. The day began with breakfast in Moody Hall before the group made their way down to the Corps Physical Training Facility. After the legacies participated in various different activities in the CPTF, the group was invited to lunch in Crozet Hall. Following lunch, cadets from the S5 staff guided tours of barracks and the surrounding areas while the VMI Museum hosted participants for a Legacy Day-themed scavenger hunt. In addition, Col. Vernon Beitzel ’72, VMI director of admissions, invited any legacy participants who were interested in learning about the admissions process to an information session in Moody Hall. “I thought the day went very well. Any time you get alumni back on post is great, but when you bring the legacy participants into the mix, it presents a unique opportunity to inspire part of the next generation of VMI cadets,” said T.J. Lighton ’15, director of alumni outreach. The legacy participants were guided throughout the day by their cadet volunteer group leaders who came from all walks in the Corps. “Like last year, the cadets were rock stars. This event does not work how it is supposed to without the support of the cadet volunteers. We had rankers and privates, 4ths and 1sts, athletes and non-athletes. It goes to show that the Corps appreciates the opportunity to interact with our alumni and their families. These are busy college students who volunteered their time on a Saturday in order to make a day special for others, and you could tell it was much appreciated by all in attendance.”

The Alumni Association offers a special thank you to all who participated and all who played a role in the planning and execution of the day, specifically Col. Gary Bissell ’88, Amy-Jo DeCarlo and the Parkhurst staff, Capt. Isaac Slone and Joshua O’Daniel as well as their staff at the Corps Physical Training Facility, and Jessi Slakman ’19, Nathan Mumford ’19 and Cadet Tristan Howard ’20, who were a fantastic help with the cadet volunteers.