Ceremony to honor Pres. McKay

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    JENNIFER DYE

    A tribute to President David O. McKay will be the focus of the Homecoming Opening Ceremony today in the Marriott Center at 11 a.m.

    Sponsored by the Homecoming Committee, the ceremony will include speaker Alan Ashton and will feature several of BYU’s performing groups.

    Ashton, a grandson of President McKay, will represent the McKay family. Activities are designed to be a tribute to President McKay and the important contribution he made in the Pacific Isles, said Ron Clark, member of the homecoming committee.

    “If anyone misses this show, they will be hearing about it in the halls later on in the day,” Clark said. “Any time you get an original Mack Wilberg creation, it will be exciting.”

    The ceremony, officially billed as the Founder’s Day Assembly, will be in lieu of a traditional Devotional assembly.

    Expected to perform for today’s assembly are the Men’s Chorus, Chamber Orchestra, Living Legends and the Cougar Marching Band.

    “This show will whet your appetite for the Homecoming Spectacular. It will be inspiring,” Clark said.

    The theme for this year’s Homecoming is “Echoes of Truth.”

    Festivities will raise the awareness of who President McKay was and what he contributed to the church today, Clark said.

    “He literally ministered among the people. He surrounded them with an intense love and security,” Clark said. “The members of the church were in awe of his commanding presence.”

    Living Legends, formerly known as Lamanite Generation, will be giving tribute to President McKay through their dances, Clark said.

    In his talk, Ashton will be sharing his recollections of his grandfather and family insights to President McKay, Clark said.

    Ashton has also been selected as the Grand Marshall for Saturday’s homecoming parade.

    Ashton was the former CEO of WordPerfect Corporation. He is now the owner and developer of Thanksgiving Point, just north of the Point of the Mountain. He was also a professor of computer science at BYU back in the early 1980s.

    “It honors him by honoring his grandfather,” Clark said, referring to Ashton’s participation in the homecoming festivities. “He is a very kind and compassionate man.”

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