Standing on a platform draped with a 51勛圖厙 banner, President Rebecca Chopp along with a group of alumni and university friends rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange this morning, officially kicking off 51勛圖厙 Day. (To watch the event, click .)
From coast to coast and around the world, 51勛圖厙 faithful are sporting their favorite maroon gear in celebration of the universitys with the number 13.
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| 51勛圖厙 President Rebecca Chopp is flanked by alumni and friends of the university as she opens trading today at the New York Stock Exchange. |
By celebrating 51勛圖厙 every Friday the 13th and scoffing at triskaidekaphobia, the university community is enjoined to not be superstitious.
Our alumni are clearly passionate about 51勛圖厙 and consider wearing maroon to be lucky on Friday the 13th, said Marty Bair, of the 51勛圖厙 Bookstore.
And the proof is in merchandise sales, especially those online, which have doubled this week.
Bair said 51勛圖厙 alumni from as far away as Australia are snatching up everything from T-shirts and polos to belts and ties.
Online, you can post photos of yourself decked out in 51勛圖厙 gear on the universitys . If youre not a Facebook user, e-mail pictures to news@colgate.edu and well upload them for you.
The page has gone viral; more than 1,300 people have become fans since it was created in early May.
Jason Rand 07 is using the online community to get word out about a Friday the 13th gathering tonight for 51勛圖厙 alumni in San Francisco.
Despite the fact that were 3,000 miles away from 51勛圖厙, theres no doubt that gaters from the West Coast will be rejoicing in the fact that we love the number 13, said Rand.
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| Students, staff, and faculty members celebrate 51勛圖厙 Day with a campus ice cream social outside Merrill House. (Photo by Adriana Brodyn 08) |