thebattalionasks
Q:
What is the best advice your dad gave you?
Instituted nationally in 1972 by President Richard Nixon, Father’s Day had been celebrated unofficially for years. The first recorded celebration of Father’s Day was on July 5, 1908, in Fairmont, W. Va., after a mining explosion killed 361 of the town’s men. The first known Father’s Day celebration on the third Sunday of June was on June 19, 1910. President Calvin Coolidge suggested, in 1924, that Father’s Day should become a national holiday, and, in 1966, President Lyndon Johnson recommended the current date. Father’s Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June in 52 countries.
Sara Zaidi Senior microbiology major
“Manage your money right and live by the Golden Rule.”
Ketan Kulkarni Graduate computer engineering student
“Never give up and give it your best shot. It doesn’t matter if you succeed, give it your 100 percent.”
thebattalion ● thursday,
june 18, 2009
● serving
texas a&m since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2009 student media
R. Bowen Loftin Interim President By Meagan O’Toole-Pitts | The Battalion
“I
believe that I’m in the right place, at the right time to be able to help this university quickly heal and continue on its mission without any disruption.”
As Texas A&M University at Galveston vice president and chief executive officer, and 2008 Galveston United Way campaign chair, Interim President R. Bowen Loftin has had to think on his feet. “I’ve had a long and pretty broad career; I’ve had to do many kinds of things,” Loftin said. “2008 brought [TAMUG] two major crises. I’ve gone through enough experience in my life … that nothing much suprises me anymore. We had the kick-off luncheon at United Way in early September of 2008; on the 13th of September [Hurricane Ike] happened.” In addition to the evacuation and relocation of TAMUG students due to Hurricane Ike, the sailing accident was an extremely difficult moment for all TAMUG students, faculty and staff, Loftin said. “I got to the office at 7 in the morning on the 10th of September and looked at the models and it
looked okay,” Loftin said. “As the day went on I watched the models change, and by 2:30 I said we’re going have to leave and I made a decision to evacuate the campus and all the students were gone by the end of the day.” Loftin did not have the privilege of time in making the evacuation decision, he said. “So planning is important. Dwight Eisenhower once said that plans are nothing, planning is everything,” Loftin said. “We were able to improvise and follow our plan in general.” The timely evacuation and smooth transition to the flagship campus is widely attributed to Loftin, said Galveston County’s The Daily News editor Heber Taylor. “When he began to ask around and realized they didn’t have a plan on campus, he convened a meeting See Loftin on page 2
Stephen Fogg — THE BATTALION
Festivities to celebrate Juneteenth
Erik Evans
Holiday commemorates African heritage, culture and history
Junior nuclear engineering major
Patrique Ludan The Battalion
“Do what you say you’re going to do. People who don’t do that cause people who do to have to do things twice.”
Salam Alattar Senior mechanical engineering major
“If you want to be a healthy boy, don’t smoke and don’t drink.”
Dub Walston Senior animal science major
The community will come together to celebrate African-American heritage and culture for Juneteenth. Festivities include a Freedom Walk, .a storytelling event and a carnival Thursday and Friday in College Station. Juneteenth is a national holiday commemorating June 19, 1865, when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger landed in Galveston and brought the news to slaves in Texas that they were free, although the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued almost two and a half years earlier. The Civil War had ended about two months earlier with Gen. Robert E. Lee’s surrender. The annual celebration at Texas A&M University starts with the Freedom Walk at 9 a.m. Thursday, which begins at the Lincoln Recreational Center and ends at the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum. The event will be on Thursday, rather than Friday, due to scheduling conflicts.
Texas Reds Festival kicks off Friday
The Freedom Walk was established for children to talk with adults about what Juneteenth means to African-Americans, said Chelita Johnson, coordinator for events at the Lincoln Recreation Center. After the Freedom Walk, participants may listen to a storyteller at 10:30 a.m. Thursday at the George Bush library. Freedom’s Legacy: Drumbeats of African American Heritage, the public storytelling concert, and Echoes of Africa as Historical Concepts, a teachers’ seminar, will be by storyteller, entertainer and educator Elizabeth Kahura. Born in Kenya, Kahura was recruited by a U.S. company to teach and tell stories about African culture. The main focus of her organization is knowledge enrichment to society, she said. “The first event I am doing is a teachers’ seminar,” Kahura said. “We are showing the teachers folktales from Africa and connecting them to the outside world.”
Courtesy Photo
The community gathers to celebrate the day Gen. Gordon Granger brought news to Texas that slaves were freed.
See Juneteenth on page 2
A princess and a pony
Weekend to feature steak, wine tasting and music Alex Worsham
“Don’t do anything halfway.”
Courtney Harder Senior Recreation, Park and Tourism sciences major “When I was in the second grade, my dad showed me how to bring a guy to his knees.”
By Julie Rambin, Jason Staggs, and Christine Soriaga
Pg. 1-06.18.09.indd 1
Special to The Battalion More than 25,000 people are expected to sink their teeth into Texas steak and sip Texas wine in downtown Bryan this weekend. The third annual Texas Reds and Grapes Festival, a free public event, will kick off Friday with live music. “Midnight Express will open for Big Otis,” said event coordinator Gwynne Shillings. “Big Otis is more of an all around R&B rock and Midnight Express is more classic rock.” More than 20 wineries from Texas will be competing in a taste-off. “We’ll have wineries from all over the hill country and Dallas and some from the bluebonnet trail,” Shillings said. “ You can purchase glasses of wine or you can purchase a bottle.” Every wine is worth tasting, she said. “[The wineries] are all great. They’re all different,” Shillings said. “Of course we have the Messina Hof from here in town. They’re here every year.”
Jeremy Northum — THE BATTALION
Francessa Sturino pets “Runway” a 16-year-old American miniature horse Wednesday morning outside the Bryan Public Library. “Runway” is a part of the nonprofit organization Aggieland Pets with a Purpose which uses temperament trained animals for educational, rehabilitative and emotional assistance purposes.
See Festival on page 6
6/18/09 12:06 AM