Banquet Night

Judging by all of the responses that TigerBlog got from yesterday's entry, he is not the only one who thinks highly of Jon Kurian.

Pretty much every email or text said the same thing: "Love that guy." 

It was good to get that sort of feedback. It shows you just how many people have come into Kurian's orbit during his time here and how many have come to the same conclusions that TB has. 

One of the people who reached out was Ford Family Director of Athletics Emeritus Gary Walters, who offered this to both TB and Kurian:

"Congrats. Lorin is smiling."

Gary, of course, was referring to Lorin Maurer, for whom the award that Kurian was presented with last week at the final Department of Athletics staff meeting for the academic year. As TB wrote yesterday, the award is given: to that member of the Princeton Athletics family who best reflects the passion, dedication and infectious enthusiasm that defined Lorin Maurer’s character and her inspiring impact on colleagues and friends. Awarded in the memory of Lorin Maurer h78, 1978-2009.

Speaking of namesakes, Gary himself is the namesake for tonight's big event, the Gary Walters PVC Awards Banquet. It's an event that Gary himself originated back in 1998, as a way of presenting the major departmental awards.

That first banquet was held in the lobby of Jadwin Gym. Since then, it has grown from a handful of people to nearly 700, complete with awards, highlights, video tributes and a massive celebration of the graduating athletes.

It also corresponds to the opening night of Reunions, and so there is an incredible party vibe everywhere at Princeton. The Walters Banquet has persevered through thunderstorms, different venues and even a pandemic that forced it to be online twice, but it remains what Gary envisioned it would be: A jewel of a celebration of everything that is great about Princeton Athletics.

There is the Citizen Athlete Award, given to an alum for outstanding contribution to sport and society. The winner tonight will be General Mark Milley, a hockey player fro the Class of 1980 and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which makes him the nation's highest ranking military member.

The is also the Marvin Bressler Award, named for the longtime sociology professor who served as the inspiration for the Princeton Athletic Fellows program after Walters' undergraduate experience with Marv when Walters was the point guard on the basketball team in the 1960s. The Bressler Award goes to "that member of the Princeton family who, through heartfelt support of the University’s student-athletes and coaches, best embodies a belief in the lifelong lessons taught by competition and athletics as a complement to the overall educational mission in the spirit of Marvin Bressler, a Princeton professor of sociology from 1963-94."

Tonight the Bressler Award will be given to Kathleen Mannheimer, who has assisted so many Princeton athletes in her role at the University's Center for Career Development.

Mostly, though, the banquet is about the seniors. The von Kienbusch Award will be given to the top senior female athlete; the Roper Trophy will be given to the top senior male athlete. The 1916 Cup will be presented to the graduating athlete in the highest academic standard.

There is also the Art Lane Award, which is the undergraduate version of the Citizen Athlete Award. This year, there is also the debut of the Chris Sailer Leadership Award, named for the Hall-of-Fame women's lacrosse coach who retired at the end of the 2022 season.

There have been finalists announced for all of those awards. The envelopes will be opened at the banquet. 

It starts with a cocktail hour in which the seniors get to spend some time together, as teammates and classmates. It ends with a video that includes a photo of every senior from every team. 

After that, there is the presentation of the letter sweaters — and then several thousand pictures or so.

When you come to Princeton as an athlete, you're taking on a great challenge. It's not an easy one. The ability to work with the best academically and athletically never is. 

It is, though, a challenge well worth the effort. It may seem overwhelming that first year, but as time goes along, each and every Princeton athlete gets to see the benefit of their experience and learn things about themselves that they probably never realized before. Finally, finally, the end of that experience is here.

Tonight is about of all of that.

Every senior there has more than earned the right to be celebrated.