In preparation for the Badgers' football game against Illinois, the 2008 UW Homecoming parade lifted student spirits Friday with a performance from the band and fireworks at the Memorial Union Terrace.
The parade, hosted by the Wisconsin Alumni Association and the 2008 Homecoming Committee, started at 5 p.m. on Gilman Street and ended outside the State Street Starbucks.
Student organizations, residence halls, sororities and fraternities participated in week-long Homecoming activities, including the parade, to raise money for the Dean of Students Crisis Fund. The fund gives students a short-term loan during unexpected financial crises.
The parade, one of the largest events during Homecoming week, brought current and former UW-Madison students together.
Dana Schmidman, a UW-Madison 2005 graduate, still lives in Madison but said she came to the parade to celebrate Homecoming with former classmates.
I am just celebrating being a Badger,"" Schmidman said. ""I live here and I wanted to watch it with all my friends - one of [whom] was my roommate my freshman year.""
Ben Emmrich, a UW-Madison 2007 graduate and former Wisconsin Alumni Student Board member, said he flew in from San Francisco for 30 hours of Homecoming festivities.
""I just flew in this morning and I have to fly back soon because I live so far away,"" he said. ""The best part of [homecoming] is seeing other old WASB alums.""
In fear of weather restrictions, the Homecoming Committee organized the parade in preparation for rain. Karyn Christianson, parade chair of the Homecoming Committee, said participants put materials in plastic bags to avoid rain damage and convertible cars put their tops up.
""Overall, the parade went very smoothly, everyone was prepared, and volunteers went above and beyond to make sure that happened,"" Christianson said.
The winners of the parade's float contest fell into three categories: residence halls, student organizations and Greeks. Float winners included Tripp, Adams and Slichter Halls, WASB, Tri-Delta sorority and Acacia and Alpha Gamma Rho fraternities.
Homecoming week was capped off with the first Big Ten Conference win of the 2008 football season. The Badgers beat the Illinois Illini 27-17.
