June 6, 2012

DAYTON, Ohio — The University of Dayton Libraries will honor the memory of late U.S. Rep. Charles Whalen Jr. by presenting part of his collection to the public and dedicating a tree in his honor during the University’s Reunion Weekend.

The University events will be held in conjunction with a ceremony during which the city of Dayton will bestow a permanent honorary designation for L Street — “Chuck Whalen Lane.” The tree blessing and dedication are set for 11 a.m. Saturday, June 9, on the front lawn of Albert Emanuel Hall.

Videos, photos and other materials from the Charles W. Whalen Jr. Congressional Papers collection will be on display during an open house from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, June 9, in Albert Emanuel Hall. It is free and open to the public.

Whalen, a 1942 University of Dayton graduate, served Ohio’s 3rd District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1966-1979 following more than a decade of service to the University of Dayton as an economics professor. He died in 2011.

More than 2,000 University of Dayton alumni from the classes of 1940-49, 1962, 1967, 1972, 1977, 1982, 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002 and 2007, and their friends and family will return for Reunion Weekend June 8-10.

Reunion Weekend tees off with the UD Alumni Open at The Golf Club at 8 a.m. Friday, June 8, Yankee Trace in Centerville, Ohio. Friday’s festivities conclude with class gatherings throughout campus from 7:30 p.m. to midnight.

In addition to the events to memorialize Whalen, Saturday’s events include the Flyer Fun Run/Walk, open houses for various campus buildings — including the new alumni center in the 1700 South Patterson Building — and wedding vow renewal ceremony.

Reunion Weekend concludes at 10 a.m. Sunday with Mass in the Immaculate Conception Chapel.

For more information about the University of Dayton’s Reunion Weekend, visit http://www.udayton.edu/alumni/#5