Downtown merchants vie to show Bronco pride during Spirit Week

KALAMAZOO—Which businesses will be the most spirited of them all?

Restaurants, retailers and other downtown Kalamazoo merchants will be vying Oct. 1-5 to become the champs of “Spirit Week,” as part of Western Michigan University’s homecoming celebration. Winners will be announced during WMU’s 89th annual homecoming game on Saturday, Oct. 6. The game’s kick off is set for 2 p.m.

Throughout the week leading up to the game, businesses will exhibit Bronco pride in a variety of ways—creatively displaying WMU colors and emblems, flying WMU flags, offering student discounts—in pursuit of a Spirit Week trophy. One trophy will go to a restaurant or bar and another to a retailer or office.

Homecoming pep rally downtown

Spirit Week activities downtown will culminate with a pep rally at 8:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 5, on the North Kalamazoo Mall. The rally will feature Coach Bill Cubit, Bronco football players, the Bronco Marching Band and University cheer and dance teams. That evening, downtown Kalamazoo will already be buzzing with those attending Art Hop, which ends just as the pep rally begins.

Bronco Marching Band members, along with cheerleaders and dancers, will take that buzz to the next level as they process from Lovell Street down the entire length of the Kalamazoo Mall to its north end to begin the rally. The North Kalamazoo Mall rally location is between the Radisson Plaza Hotel & Suites and the Kalamazoo Valley Community College Center for New Media.

Homecoming is a campus and communitywide celebration. The Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo, Discover Kalamazoo, Downtown Kalamazoo Inc., the WMU Athletics Department, Office of Development and Alumni Relations, and Student Activities and Leadership Programs are among the organizing partners.

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