Home / Campus Life / Pittsburg State hosts 9th annual Taste of Pittsburg event
Trupti Patel, senior in chemistry, serves Ryan Bennett (right), freshman in communication, and his mom during Taste of Pittsburg at Overman Student Center Friday, Oct. 18. The event was recognized during the Homecoming Week and awards were given out that night. Diego Oliva

Pittsburg State hosts 9th annual Taste of Pittsburg event

Homecoming week is full of events. One homecoming tradition is the annual Taste of Pittsburg event. This year, the event was held in the Crimson and Gold Ballrooms in the Overman Student Center from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 18 and over 200 people attended the event.  

The event included live music from Todd East & Eastbound and a recognition of the Kenneth K. Bateman Outstanding Alumni Award recipients.  

There were also multiple popular Pittsburg restaurants present at the event including Bamboo, Barto’s Idle Hour, Calvin’s Catering BBQ, Guadalajara Mexican Grill, The Pitt, The Mall Deli, Pallucca’s Italian Market, Root Coffeehouse, Sodexo Catering, and Sweet Design Cakery.  

The recipients of the Kenneth K. Bateman Outstanding Alumni Award were Matt Frankenbery who graduated PSU in 1994. Frankenbery is now the Vice President of Education for Pitsco Education. Rebecca Light who graduated in 1994 is the founder and CEO of SilverCreek RCM. Kimberly Young graduated in 1997 and is the President of KC Animal Health Corridor and Vice President of Bioscience Development for Kansas City Area Development Council. And Amy Trowbridge who graduated in 2001 and is a Senior Creative Writer for Hallmark.  

Director of PSU Alumni & Constituent Relations Jon Bartlow says the event is a way for people to reconnect and to welcome back graduates of Pitt State.  

“The event is a kickoff to Homecoming Weekend and a way to welcome alumni and friends back to campus,” Bartlow said. “Great local food is the main focus with food from 10 local favorite restaurants. We honor the Homecoming King/Queen and their court, The Dr. Kenneth K Bateman Outstanding Alumni and others. There is live music and a chance for people to reconnect.” 

 Senior accounting major Rachel Lubowicz attended the event and had a nice time.  

“… It was fun,” Lubowicz said. “… This year, they had the bar open. It was really nice and enjoyable… I like that it’s like a wrap up of the whole entire week and it’s really nice and you get to taste like all different places of Pittsburg…”  

The Taste of Pittsburg is an annual tradition that kicks off homecoming weekend at Pitt State.  

“It has become an important way to kick off Homecoming weekend,” Bartlow said. “We know that food and special restaurants help to make many fond memories for alumni, and this helps to give them a “taste” of what that was like in years past. We also have a cash bar and new this year…..wine and beer tasting.” 

Bartlow hopes to see the event continue to grow and for more people to attend next year’s Taste of Pittsburg.  

“This is a unique event and the only one I am aware of with so many local restaurants serving at once for a low price,” Bartlow said. “We have never heard of anyone who has attended and has not enjoyed it. We hope more faculty, staff and students in the future consider attending next year.” 

Lubowicz is on the homecoming committee and received complementary tickets to the event.   

“Well, I’m actually on the homecoming committee so we get complementary tickets from the committee itself,” Lubowicz said. “But I personally wanted to go because I was the royalty chair this year and so I got to see the homecoming court get announce which was really fun.”  

According to Lubowicz, it was exciting to see the recipients of the Kenneth K. Bateman Outstanding Alumni Award announced.  

“It was actually really cool to see those people all being announced because… (they were) students like us and to know that one day we could be there or contribute as much as they did to Pittsburg, it’s really cool,” Lubowicz said. 

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