Jenny Haynes, of Shepherdstown, raises her foam finger in the air, as she cheers at last year’s Shepherd University Homecoming weekend. Courtesy photo

SHEPHERDSTOWN — It’s an annual gathering that’s more than a ritual, more than a remembrance of past times where smiles were the currency of the week.

Homecoming, during a football weekend, comes with much anticipation and nearly as much preparation.

A football game brings together the factions of alumni and current students for a celebration of days-gone-by for some and days-to-come for many others.

At Shepherd University, the Homecoming planners will bring back championship teams and have them congregate on-field, to be recognized for their team-wide accomplishments.

There is a Homecoming parade down German Street that features floats, youth organizations and even a few pets. Sororities and fraternities vie in a friendly competition for spirit-themed prizes and on-campus recognition.

Throughout the week leading up to the football game, breakfasts, luncheons and dinners are held — some for students only, others for graduates only and some for a cordial mixture of current students and alumni.

On the same Saturday as the football game, a breakfast will be held on the front lawn of stately McMurran Hall on German Street.

Campus activities, not including food or drink, are planned and carried out to the satisfaction of those involved.

There is a nighttime dance for those with that social talent.

This fall, the school is bringing back football teams that won West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships in 1994, 1999 and 2004.

Players from those three teams will gather in one end zone of Ram Stadium and will be introduced and recognized by the crowd.

Shepherd is no longer a member of the WVIAC, but now plays in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference as that body’s only non-Pennsylvanian school.

The season’s Homecoming game will be held on Oct. 19, when Millersville University will come to Shepherdstown and become a part of the much anticipated festivities.

Homecoming is a time honored tradition, having played a significant role at the school even when it was known as Shepherd State Teachers College and its football games were staged on Fairfax Field across the highway, in the shadows of Miller Hall and the college president’s home.

Even the emeritus classes (those graduating over 50 years ago) will return, some for the first time, remembering when Sara Cree Hall and Boteler Hall were still standing but now are only memories.

Laughter will be recalled; fellow students and tales about them will spring a droll smile; and then football will be played at Shepherd’s 5,000-seat stadium.