They came, they saw, they admired.

Thousands of Tri-State University alumni and friends gathered on the revitalized campus to take a much-anticipated look at the university’s $26 million investment in a new university center, student apartments and remodeled administration center while congratulating award winners and enjoying a victory on the Thunder football field as part of Homecoming weekend festivities Oct. 4-6.

The view from that field told much of the story. Replacing last year’s look at a skeletal University Center and Center for Technology and Online Resources, construction cranes, and mud, was a sweeping view of the completed 90,000-foot center, decked out with landscaping, outdoor café tables, and TSU blue sidewalk banners.

Alumni and the public took the first official look at the new center at a ribbon-cutting ceremony Saturday at 6 p.m., enjoying dinner in its Whitney Commons dining facility and examining the facility from top to bottom for the remainder of the evening. Strolling under a central mall area hung with flags from the countries of TSU alumni and lined by 25-foot potted palms, alumni viewed the Sponsel Library, Fabiani Theatre, Center for Digital Excellence, fitness room, bookstore, and student lounge.

On Friday in the new theater, donors such as alumnus Dr. Clifford Sponsel, his wife, Juliette, and Virginia Fabiani, wife of late TSU alumnus Dante Fabiani, received recognition for their roles in bringing this segment of the campus improvement plan to fruition.

On Thursday evening, the Fabiani Theatre spotlight played upon Touchstone Award winners, alumni whose monetary gifts have significantly impacted the university. Virginia Fabiani received the Marjorie Bowstrum Woman of Distinction Award, while Dr. Clifford Sponsel was honored with the Pillar of Success, the university’s highest award, for his contributions on the TSU Board of Trustees, to Fawick Hall, the University Center, and C.W. Sponsel Administration Center.

Sponsel made a speech before the ribbon cutting for his new namesake, the C.W. Sponsel Administration Center, on Friday. The images of trustees Lawrence Franks and Dr. Robert E. Turner joined those of Sponsel and former TSU President Littleton Sniff on a glass etching on the main first-floor corridor, honoring their contributions to the center and the university’s vision.

Saturday’s Homecoming Breakfast honored recipients of the Outstanding Achievement, Distinguished Service, and Distinguished Service Young Alumnus Awards and this year’s TSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductees.

Interested alumni also took advantage of tours of the University Center, Kinney Street, and Moss Street apartments Friday, admiring the central lounge areas with fireplaces and one-, two-, and three-bedroom units furnished by Drs. Ralph and Sheri Trine.

All eyes turned to Shive Field on Saturday, as the Thunder faced off against the  Kalamazoo College Hornets. TSU prevailed in the contest, besting Kalamazoo by a 17-14 score.