Howard Payne University invites alumni, prospective students and other friends of the university to the Stinger Spectacular on Friday and Saturday, October 14-15. For the second year in a row, the event will combine Homecoming, Yellow Jacket Preview and Family Weekend for an exciting time on campus.

“Stinger Spectacular is a wonderful weekend full of activities for the entire HPU family – from alumni and current students to families and prospective students,” said Dr. Kalie Lowrie, assistant vice president for alumni relations. “We are looking forward to providing opportunities for connections and reunions as people celebrate the impact Howard Payne University continues to make in their lives. HPU is a special place because of the people who are connected to us. This is a weekend to celebrate those connections and being a Yellow Jacket!”

Registration for Stinger Spectacular events is available online at www.hputx.edu/spectacular. Some events may require payment, while many are free of charge. Prospective students interested in attending Yellow Jacket Preview can register at www.hputx.edu/yjp. All Yellow Jacket Preview events are free of charge. A new offering this year is the Stinger Pass, which costs $20 per person and includes admission into a choice of breakfasts, the HPU Family Picnic and the HPU Football game (a $35 value).

Visit www.hputx.edu/spectacular for a complete schedule of events, lodging information, a campus map and other details. Individuals who register by October 1 will receive a gift. For more information, call the Office of Alumni Relations at 325-649-8007.

During the weekend, alumni and friends are invited to participate in traditional Homecoming events. The Alumni Banquet, sponsored by the HPU Alumni Association, will be held at 5:45 p.m. on Friday in the Mabee University Center’s Beadel Dining Hall, where the 2022 Honorees will be recognized. Cobbler on the Campus, featuring cobbler from Underwood’s Bar-B-Q, will be held from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on the Muse Mall and Plaza.

Saturday’s festivities will begin with the Alumni & Family Breakfast, sponsored by the City of Brownwood, at 8 a.m. in Beadel Dining Hall. The Stinger Spectacular Parade, sponsored by Bruner Auto Group, will begin at Brownwood Coliseum at 10 a.m., traveling through downtown Brownwood on Center Avenue and on to Fisk Street, where it will pass through the HPU campus. The HPU Family Picnic, sponsored by Wendlee Broadcasting and Promotional Products, will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Muse Mall and Plaza on campus. A special jazz trio will perform, led by Grammy Music Educator of the Year Stephen Cox ’10. The HPU Yellow Jacket football team will play Southwestern University at 2:00 p.m. at Gordon Wood Stadium, with the Homecoming Court to be announced at halftime. The HPU women’s and men’s soccer teams will also have games at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. respectively at Citizens National Bank Soccer Field against McMurry University.

Additionally, the classes of 1972, 1982, 1992, 2002 and 2022 will celebrate reunions. Jacket Alums in Ministry and Academy alumni will host receptions on Saturday, as well as groups including the Squirrels intramural team and the Sigma Alpha Sigma/Jacket Co-eds sorority. Alumni can visit the official, online Stinger Spectacular schedule for times and locations for these and other events.

Yellow Jacket Preview will give prospective students the opportunity to meet with faculty and staff, tour the campus and explore the opportunity to join the HPU Family as a future Yellow Jacket. Students will check in at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday at Mims Auditorium and have a morning full of activities including watching the Stinger Spectacular Parade and enjoying the HPU Family Picnic. 

Family Weekend will allow parents and families of current HPU students to experience a weekend at HPU. On Friday, families are invited to the HPU Student and Family Dinner, which will be held from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Muse Mall and Plaza; and Cobbler on the Campus, mentioned above. On Saturday, families are invited to watch the Stinger Spectacular Parade, enjoy the HPU Family Picnic and then travel to Gordon Wood Stadium for the HPU Yellow Jacket football game versus Southwestern University at 3:30 p.m.

Performances of the “The Sound of Music,” presented by the HPU School of Music & Fine Arts, will be held in L.J. Mims Auditorium on Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at a 2:30 p.m. matinee. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students and can be purchased through the Stinger Spectacular registration webpage.

The HPU Alumni Choir Concert will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday in Grace Chapel. The HPU Marching Band will present an exhibition at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday on the front steps of Mims Auditorium. The Alumni Art Exhibition will be open from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday in the Dorothy and Wendell Mayes Art Gallery in the Doakie Day Art Center. Children are invited to participate in Little Jackets’ Nest, sponsored by Early Texas Visitors and Events Center, on Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

HPU thanks the following businesses for their support of Stinger Spectacular. Gold sponsors include Bruner Auto Family, City of Brownwood, Early Texas Visitors and Events Center, HPU Alumni Association and Wendlee Broadcasting. Navy sponsors include Double H, Dr Pepper Distributing, TexasBank, Underwood’s Bar-B-Q, United and Willie’s T’s. White sponsors include Citizens National Bank, Common Grounds Coffeehouse, MC Bank, Painter & Johnson Financial, Robnett Integra Insurance and Smith & Sharpe.