NEWS: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SPRINGFIELD, MO., Oct. 30, 2010— Drury’s O’Reilly Family Event Center officially opened on Saturday, Oct. 30 with the cut of a giant red ribbon by Rosalie O’Reilly Wooten ’64.
The ribbon cutting and building dedication marked a culmination of a month-long celebration of the opening of the new arena on the Drury University campus. Tonight, the celebration continues when the Pointer Sisters take the stage in the Grand Opening concert at 8 p.m. The Pointer Sisters took the place of Aretha Franklin after Franklin cancelled several shows due to health reasons.
Rosalie Wooten, center, cuts the ribbon at the official grand opening of the O'Reilly Family Event Center on the Drury campus at a ceremony on Saturday morning. Mark Schiefelbein photo.
“Today, the sun shines bright on Drury University and the city of Springfield,” said Drury President Todd Parnell. “Because of the O’Reilly family’s generosity, our community has a first class, state of the art arena in which to host regional and national sporting, cultural and entertainment events.”
Friday night, Oct. 29, more than 2,000 fans packed into the O’Reilly Family Event Center for a concert featuring Lifehouse, Kris Allen and Alyssa Bernal.
Construction began on the O’Reilly Family Event Center in May 2009. Fundraising for the 3,100-seat event center began in December of 2007 with a $6 million naming gift from the O’Reilly family of Springfield.
Notable dates at the O’Reilly Family Event Center coming up in the month of November:
- Nov. 5, Musician Darius Rucker
- Nov. 13, Men’s and Women’s basketball home openers
- Nov. 18, Funnyman Bill Engvall
Contact:
Myra Miller
O’Reilly Family Event Center Director
Office: (417) 873-6381
Mobile: (417) 849-0155
E-mail: mmiller1@drury.edu
www.drurytickets.com
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