{"id":61035,"date":"2026-04-02T15:00:52","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T19:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=61035"},"modified":"2026-04-02T15:00:53","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T19:00:53","slug":"a-t-shirt-cannon-a-lip-sync-battle-and-herm-on-an-e-bike-oh-my","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2026\/a-t-shirt-cannon-a-lip-sync-battle-and-herm-on-an-e-bike-oh-my\/","title":{"rendered":"A T-shirt cannon, a lip-sync battle, and Herm on an e-bike, oh my!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Spirited pep rally kicks off LovEMU Giving Day 2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Herm was missing. The crowd of faculty, staff, students, and alumni at Yoder Arena for Wednesday morning\u2019s LovEMU Pep Rally called out his name. They searched high and low. But he was nowhere to be found.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suddenly, the roar of a motorcycle engine filled the gymnasium. Moments later, everyone\u2019s favorite friendly blue lion glided onto the hardwood on a sleek new e-bike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The e-bike, announced Nicole Litwiller \u201919, MA \u201920 (conflict transformation)<\/strong>, LovEMU organizer and pep rally emcee, was a new addition to the Sadie Hartzler Library, thanks to a generous donation from an EMU alum, the diligent work of senior Joshua Stucky<\/strong>, and a partnership between library staff and the Shenandoah Bicycle Company.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Starting Monday, students can check out the bike from the library at any time and \u201ceasily bike all over campus and Harrisonburg,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Herm\u2019s dramatic entrance was just one of many memorable moments that energized the crowd with the LovEMU Giving Day spirit. Wednesday\u2019s pep rally had it all: a current student exclaiming her love for EMU, a future student officially declaring EMU as his school for next year, and performances by the previous night\u2019s Lip-Sync Battle champions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt’s sure to be the best Lip-Sync Battle this side of the Shenandoah,\u201d promised fellow pep rally organizer and emcee Tyler Goss<\/strong>, director for student engagement and leadership development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scroll down to the bottom of this article to watch a video recording of the pep rally.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Students snagged free LovEMU shirts shot into the crowd by the BaZOOKa T-shirt cannon<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Throughout the event, engineering lab tech Henry Bowser <\/strong>and engineering student Max Fritts <\/strong>fired shirts into the stands using the BaZOOKa T-shirt cannon. The launcher, which debuted at last year\u2019s pep rally, was funded by 2019 alumni Ben<\/strong>, an engineering graduate, and Kayla Zook<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LovEMU Giving Day is an opportunity to pause and celebrate all the incredible things about EMU, which include \u201cour amazing academic programs, our incredible athletic teams, our impactful clubs and orgs, and our supportive community as a whole,\u201d Litwiller said. \u201cPart of how we can express that celebration is through generosity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Funds from LovEMU Giving Day benefit current and future students, faculty, and staff by making education more affordable and providing them with the facilities and resources they need to access an outstanding education. Since the first LovEMU Giving Day in 2017, the university has raised more than $2 million on annual giving days. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to the generosity of supporters, this year\u2019s LovEMU Giving Day was the best one yet, with over $402,000 raised, according to the LovEMU website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pep rally began with the premiere of the official LovEMU Giving Day video. It celebrates the past nine giving days and sets sights on the future, featuring voiceovers from Litwiller and Marketing and Communications Project Manager Aric Berg<\/strong>, along with cameos from faculty, staff, students, athletes, and alumni. The video was produced by Macson McGuigan \u201917<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watch the official hype video below!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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