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In September 2014, the first Lodge and Libations event at Horn Field Campus (HFC) kicked off this year's 50th anniversary celebration with an ongoing campaign to raise funds for a new outdoor education building at HFC.
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A rendering (front view) of the proposed new outdoor education building at Western Illinois University's Horn Field Campus.
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Scope of the Project
The facility expansion will support leadership activities and outdoor education opportunities for regional primary, secondary and college students, faculty, WIU alumni and Macomb community members. Many groups include urban youth and minority populations. Integration of the following components, which are essential in providing enhanced residential/day use outdoor education and leadership experiences, include: kitchen area that meets state health codes; equipment storage accommodating outdoor gear and maintenance equipment to increase operational and financial efficiency; classroom and meeting space with appropriate technology to accommodate large groups; restroom/utility infrastructure to replace inadequate and antiquated facilities; and a geothermal system to promote sustainable and efficient use of energy and increase participant education about sustainable technologies. With a new building, extension of program outreach and instruction (to increase educational opportunities and the current number of users and instruction) will be possible.
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WIU Department of Recreation, Tourism and Park Administration Professor Emeritus Frank Lupton (right) and a student pose near a sign in Horn Lodge that bears Lupton's signature saying: "The sun is shining and the birds are singing… it's a great day to be alive!" View more photos and memories of Horn Field Campus at www.wiu.edu/coehs/rpta/horn_field_campus/50years/index.html#.
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Lodge and Libations Fundraiser for New Outdoor Ed Building at Horn Field Campus Set for Sept. 26

September 14, 2015

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MACOMB, IL — As of this year, Horn Field Campus (HFC) — the 92-acre outdoor educational facility just south of Macomb — has been part of Western Illinois University for 50 years.

A year ago in September, the first Lodge and Libations event (held at Horn Field Lodge) kicked off this year's anniversary celebration with an ongoing campaign to raise funds for a new outdoor education building at HFC. The building, which will cost $750,000, will be constructed in honor of WIU Department of Recreation, Tourism and Park Administration (RPTA) Professor Emeritus Frank Lupton. More importantly, though, once it is completed, the new facility will help build on Lupton's vision for Horn Field Campus—that of a premier outdoor educational facility that will not only enhance the learning experiences of Western students, but also serve as a state-of-the-art facility for the hundreds of groups who use HFC every year.

This year, the second annual Lodge and Libations, set to start at 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 26 at HFC, will be a celebration of those who love and who have contributed — and who want to continue to contribute — to Horn Field Campus. Lupton will be there again to talk about HFC's rich history, and the event will feature a social, food and entertainment. The cost to attend Lodge and Libations is $25, and online registration is available at www.wiu.com/web-apps/Alumni/. Those who cannot attend and still want to contribute can text "Horn50" to 41444.

Lupton, who retired from Western in 1993, said his dream to use Horn Field Campus as a preeminent outdoor educational facility started even before he took the faculty position in the RPTA department.

"I would say my vision for it probably started when I interviewed for the position, back in 1971. I liked Western, and I very much liked the field campus," Lupton said. "I had visions of it becoming like some other outdoor educational facilities I was acquainted with around the country. It is such a great resource—an outdoor center, where a variety of groups could come and learn and enjoy—and serves a lot of purposes. A new building could help attract people from across the country. Horn Field Campus has that kind of potential," Lupton noted.

Horn Field Campus… A Great Place to Celebrate Being Alive

Since the early 1970s—when Lupton first envisioned the campus as an ideal location for the outdoor educational purpose of instructing his RPTA students—Horn Field Campus has continued to evolve. And while the large campus provides many amenities—it includes woodlands, prairie, nature trails, as well as a challenge course (that features a high ropes course) and a 40-foot climbing/rappelling wall—for the faculty, students and community members, the building infrastructure situated on the campus is close to 80 years old.

According to the book, "First Century: A Pictorial History of Western Illinois University," by WIU Distinguished Professor Emeritus John Hallwas, the tract of land on which Horn Field Campus sets came to be a part of WIU in the mid-1960s. The buildings located there, however, were built in the early part of the 20th century.

"[Frank J.] Horn, who owned Coca-Cola Bottling companies in Macomb and other towns, bought the property in 1946…. The tract was appraised at $96,200 when Western bought it. The state paid $56,000, and the other $40,200 represented a gift to the university," Hallwas wrote. "The property included a brick lodge, three brick cabins, which had been built in the 1930s by the former owner, William Bacon."

Many who know Lupton—his students, colleagues and friends—likely remember his signature saying, "The sun is shining and the birds are singing… it's a great day to be alive!" Mindy Pheiffer, who started as the Horn Field Campus program coordinator in 2005, said over years, hundreds of his students embraced his attitude and his vision (including herself) for Horn Field Campus.

"We hope to incorporate Dr. Lupton's signature saying somewhere in the structure of the new building," Pheiffer noted.

For more about the history of Horn Field Campus and how a new building will benefit students, faculty, alumni, staff and community members who visit and use HFC, see www.wiu.edu/news/newsrelease.php?release_id=11899. Photos taken at HFC over the years, as well as additional information about the proposed new building, are also available at www.wiu.edu/coehs/rpta/horn_field_campus/50years/index.html.

For more information about ways to get involved to help Horn Field Campus, contact Pheiffer at (309) 298-HORN, MJ-Pheiffer@wiu.edu or the RPTA office at (309) 298-1967.

Posted By: Teresa Koltzenburg (WIUNews@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing