- September 26, 2012
- 10:24 am
- Akanksha Jayanthi
Cinquanta! 50 years of JFRC
This weekend, alumni of the John Felice Rome Center (JFRC) will gather in Chicago to celebrate Cinquanta!, the 50th anniversary of Loyola’s campus in Rome, Italy.
Alumni from every class, including the inaugural class of spring ’62, are attending the celebration.
JFRC alums can expect a fun-filled weekend exploring Chicago and reminiscing with fellow classmates about their time abroad. Individual class reunions will be held throughout the city on Friday evening. On Saturday afternoon, alums can attend one of four city excursions taking them to some of Chicago’s hotspots. The main event of the weekend is La Festa!, a gala and benefit evening being held at Union Station on Saturday night. Attendees can enjoy hors d’oeuvres, a plated three-course dinner, and an open bar, all with the musical backdrop of a live jazz band.
Alumni attending the gala can also enter a raffle featuring a number of Italian-themed items, including hotel stays in Italy, domestic round-trip airline tickets, and Salvatore Ferragamo scarves. One lucky attendee will even drive away with a brand new 2012 FIAT 500 Pop car from event sponsor FIAT of Chicago.
Richard Williams, director of special events, says that partnering with Fiat was an easy decision, partly because part of Fiat’s target audience is college students. Additionally, Williams says JFRC alumni have nostalgic connections to the car company.
“Many of our JFRC alumni have very fond memories of driving a Fiat around Rome while they were students, and with the release of the Fiat 500 and the opening of the first Chicago Fiat dealership, we knew it was a perfect match,” Williams says.
All proceeds from the raffle tickets will go towards the Insieme per il futuro campaign, which is aimed at bettering the facilities at the Rome Center, allowing for more school-sponsored excursions and internships in Rome, and increasing scholarship availability for students.
Sunday rounds out the celebration with a morning Mass, followed by brunch at the Water Tower Campus.
Registration is closed for the weekend, but more information can be found at the Cinquanta! website.
