OWU Alumni “W” Association

The Alumni "W" Association was founded by George Gauthier in the early 1920s and is made up of nearly 4,000 former varsity lettermen and letterwomen from around the world. All Battling Bishop athletes automatically become members of the Alumni "W" Association once they don the red and black of a varsity team.

For more than eight decades, the Alumni "W" Association has provided the Ohio Wesleyan intercollegiate athletic program with outstanding support and momentum. The Hall of Fame reception and dinner, held annually during Homecoming, is the rallying point for the Association.

Today, Ohio Wesleyan has one of the finest intercollegiate athletic programs of any Division III college in the country, with 23 varsity sports—11 for men, 11 for women, and one co-educational sport (sailing). The Battling Bishops have won the North Coast Athletic Conference All-Sports Trophy six times and the NCAA national championship four times (once in men's basketball and men's soccer, and twice in women's soccer). More than 30 percent of the student body is on a varsity or junior varsity team. It is an exemplary program of which we can be very proud—and one that deserves our continued support.

Lifetime Pass

Upon graduation, all varsity lettermen and letterwomen are issued an Alumni "W" Association lifetime pass. This pass allows the holder to attend all Ohio Wesleyan sponsored home athletic contests free of charge. There is no fee for the Alumni "W" Association lifetime pass. Alumni "W" Association members may request a lifetime pass by contacting either the Athletic Department at 740-368-3726 or the Alumni Relations Office at 740-368-3325.

Athletic Hall of Fame

Please click here to visit the official web site.

For a list of past recipients, please visit the complete recipient list.

Robert Strimer Honor Award

In 1998, the Hall of Fame selection committee established a new award to honor individuals who have made unusually significant contributions to the field of intercollegiate athletics. This award has been named the Robert Strimer Honor Award, in honor of longtime coach, athletic director, and dear friend, Robert "Bob" Strimer. This prestigious award has only been given five times since its creation in 1998.

The recipients include:

• Tom Butters '60
• The Branch Rickey Family
• The Richard Gordin Family
• Max Urick '61
• Gary Schaal '63
• Don Wedge '51

The Annual Alumni "W" Association Golf Outing

The Alumni "W" Association sponsors an annual golf outing to support Team OWU. Each year, the golf outing has grown in size and in financial support to Team OWU. The 2007 golf outing provided Team OWU over $12,000 toward the general budget of the OWU Athletic Department.

The 2008 golf outing will be on Friday, September 19, 2008 and will again be held at the John Cook designed NorthStar Golf Resort near Sunbury. Online registration will be available in June. Please check back for more details.