Fort Hays State University - Reveille Yearbook (Hays, KS)

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The aroma of a homemade bierock and a glass of cold beer were loo much for Jim McHugh to resist. A variety of homemade funnel cakes, apple dumplings, bread, bratwurst, pretzels, noodles, kuchen and other German cuisine were available to those in attendance at Oktoberfest. Several Oktoberfest booths feature homemade arts and crafts. At one booth, Bonita Olivia demonstrates the technique of hand spinning yarn. Taking advantage of a bumper crop, these youngsters sell pumpkins to college students as well as townspeople. The an- nual celebration attracted approximately 28,000 from the surrounding area. oktoberfesj23 Chris Ochsm i r

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Transforming a child into a down, Paul Gregg, Hays fr., adds the finishing touches to this young Oktoberfest partici- pant ' s make-up. Many of the festival ' s booths provided more than the tradi- tional German food and beer. As 11:00 a.m. rolls around, Mayor Dan Rupp draws the first beer to start the Oktoberfest celebration. Tapping of the kegs was delayed for two hours in order to put less emphasis on the alcohol consumption. ountdown to eleve BEER CONSUMPTION AT OKTOBERFEST DELAYED When walking over the hill into Sims Park, many new participants of the Oktoberfest celebration did not see what they expected. There were people everywhere. It wasn ' t what I ex- pected ' Beth Swick, Newton freshman, said. Cars were parked in every available space on side streets sur- rounding the park, as approx- imately 28,000 people experienced the Volga-German festivities. The Oktoberfest experience in- cluded many types of German food, such as bierocks and brat- wurst, authentic Volga-German music, a medicine show and booths which sold everything from t-shirts and mugs to hand- made arts and crafts. Over the years, Oktoberfest has fought an image problem of being nothing but a beer bash. I heard Oktoberfest was just a big party ' Darlene Brokaw, Ken- sington freshman, said. But, I didn ' t think there were very many drunks ' Some newcomers were unsure of the exact purpose of Oktoberfest. I knew that it had something to do with the German heritage, Swick said, but I thought there would only be college students there ' Oktoberfest is an annual among and the surrounding communities to celebrate the strong Volga- German background in the area. Traditionally, the Oktoberfest celebration is to commemorate the harvest season. Francis Shippers, Oktoberfest chairman, explained that beer consumption is an essential part of the celebration but it is not the sole activity. To play down Oktoberfest ' s drunken image, organizers restricted beer retailers from sell- ing beer before II a.m. In the past, kegs were tapped during the opening ceremonies which began at 9 a.m. Classes were cancelled the day of Oktoberfest to give students a chance to go to the celebration and begin the Homecoming weekend. It was great to get out of class. The food was really good and I liked talking to all the people ' Brokaw said. It was fun ' I think that it is really neat that the community has this type of celebration, Swick said. There were people of every age. I had a really great time. — Stasia Keyes Oktoberfest

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Having received her traditional crown, cape and bouquet of roses, Janet E. Johnson pauses long enough to allow photographs to be taken, Wiest Hall ' s candidate, Johnson was elected homecoming queen over four other candidates. Nursing program pioneer Leora Stroup was honored as grand marshal of the Homecoming parade. The nursing building also bears her name. Dodging a Kearney State player, Robert Long attempts to complete a play during the Homecoming game. The Tigers ' ag- gressive playing resulted in a 44-21 victory. omecoming