By Leila Schoepke | Staff Writer
The new school year started at APSU with scores of events on the agenda. The 2009 Fall Fling will start a new APSU tradition this fall. The event is sponsored by APSU’s Alumni and Friends and is open to the Public.
Fall Fling Planning Committee member, Debbie Nichols, said the committee, which comprised an array of people from the richly diverse Clarksville community, joined together to introduce “the first Fall Fling as an inclusive event to celebrate the university.” The committee was in charge of planning, talking about the menu, the band, the location, and identifying people to invite. Some of the committee were also overseeing the decoration of the event’s site while making sure to retain its natural charm.
“With the leadership of Shelia Ross, we decided on a name for the event, the theme, and details including date, location, menu choices and of course a great band,” Nichols said.
“The President had suggested that we have another event that was like a counterpart to the Candlelight Ball that we do in the spring,” Ross, Director of the Office of Alumni Relations, said.
According to Ross, APSU’s Candlelight Ball was initially for an older crowd, but over the years it started attracting young professionals.
“Last year, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Candlelight Ball. It did originate being held in Clarksville, but later was moved to Nashville and it continues to be held in Nashville. It’s a formal event, it is fairly expensive, it’s a fundraiser and it could require an overnight stay at a hotel,” Ross said.
Distinct from the Candlelight Ball, which APSU President Tim Hall describes as, “a black tie affair” that has been for many years the university’s “signature social event,” and will remain one of its celebrated occasions, the Fall Fling is a more casual gathering of people, good fun and fellowship.
This year’s pioneering social event is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 18, at the Clarksville Country Club. Prices for the event are $75 per couple and $40 per person. Early reservations are necessary since seating is limited and dinner will be provided.
“We’ve been really busy this week with reservations . . . Advance reservations are required. With food involved, a dinner involved specifically, we just can’t sell tickets at the door. We have to know ahead of time,” Ross said.
Ross said the Friday, Sept. 11, deadline is a soft closing date for the advance reservations. If people want to reserve a large table, Ross can facilitate their request as well.
Guests will start their evening with a 6 p.m. social hour, followed by a dinner buffet in style at 7 p.m. served in different stations set up around the room and featuring a variety of meats, pastas, sauces, cheeses, crackers, fruits and vegetables as well as Asian cuisine.
“I am really excited about that, I think the food will be excellent and the offerings will be plentiful for people,” Ross said.
Subsequently, a lively dance accompanied by the music and signing of The Big Thrill band, a 7-piece band from Nashville, who will play a wide range of sounds from the ’30s, ’40s, all the way to the ’80s, without forgetting to enchant the attendees’ ears with some rock ‘n’ roll, Motown country, oldies, old standards, and the best of modern music.
Later in the evening, dessert and coffee will be served as the entertaining social gathering continues until midnight. A cash bar will also be open throughout the evening.
According to a press release from APSU’s Office of Alumni Relations, “a courtesy shuttle will be available to transport guests from the country club to the parking lot after the event.”
Soon after President Hall’s arrival to APSU and attendance to the Candlelight Ball, he communicated to some of the alumni the idea of organizing “something comparable to the Candlelight Ball here in Clarksville, so that alumni need not drive to Nashville or stay at a hotel there overnight, to enjoy the friendship and fellowship of other Austin Peay alums and friends.”
Ross, said the Fall Fling is a unique event because it not only is a new and original addition to APSU’s annual social activities, but also because it seeks to reach out to a more diverse audience and bring people together, old pals and new friends, to enjoy a relaxed atmosphere and a pleasant evening, locally, at an affordable price.
Besides, this occasion does not require formal attire. The attendees can wear casual elegant clothing if they wish.
“The Fall Fling is special because this is the first of what will hopefully become an annual event. It is located in Clarksville and is a bit more casual occasion. The cost is also reasonable. One of the objectives of the committee was to make the Fall Fling more accessible to more members of the community. The committee hopes to achieve a memorable evening gathering with friends, dining and dancing and saluting a great university,” Nichols said.
“It is not a fundraiser. It is what we call a friend raiser. It is just a party,” Ross said.
“I think there is room in the university’s social calendar for something a bit less informal, and for which tickets are not so expensive. So, we are looking forward to seeing many of the university’s alumni and friends at the inaugural Fall Fling,” Hall said.
“I’ve seen on the reservation list there are several administrators who will be attending and faculty, alumni, boosters, donors. We can accommodate around 300 people at the Country Club. Honestly, I would be really pleased to have around 200 for our first event. We’re just really excited and glad to have the opportunity to have a different attraction to offer,” Ross said.
