Convocation
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Singing at Convo
Singing Dear Old Macalester with the vast student body all gathered in one place.
Joanne Rawn Kaufman
Playing organ for Convocation
I remember those required/compulsory/forced-attendance Convocations every week in the old Mac Fieldhouse. Above the main floor with its platform, lectern and countless rows of assigned seats was an oval running track. At the Northwest corner of the track was a vintage two-manual pipe organ, upon which, for four years, I played “Dear Old Macalester” while everyone sang. The Mac Fieldhouse was so large that the sound from the organ was delayed a fraction of a second before I could hear the students singing: I was already on note number two when I heard them singing note number one. The melody was a theme taken from the “1812 Overture” and may be found in many current church hymnals under the tune name “Russian Hymn.” (This fact was not often mentioned — those were Cold War years so anything Russian was barely acknowledged.)
James D. Shannon
My father’s convocation speech
I remember my father's speech at the Macalester Convocation entitled "What America Means to Me." He told about his life in Armenia during slavery, how he emigrated from there to the United States in 1921, his great appreciation for this country, and gave testimony about his love for Jesus Christ.
Theodore O. Ousdigian
Mandatory Chapel and Convocation
I remember when chapel and convocation were required. Some students used the time during convocation to play checkers or card games.
Sharon Pedersen Ledeboer
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