UAB Briefs: Vintage Chevy Blazer becomes part of UAB 50th anniversary
In this weekly online feature, we keep track of interesting people and events on campus.
UAB is using a vintage automobile to help celebrate the school’s 50th anniversary.
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama is raising money to help fight the disease.
And the ROTC on campus has a brand-new training facility.
Know people, places and programs on the UAB campus that deserve a mention? Email jchambers@starnespublishing.com.
A classic Blazer
UAB, formed in 1969, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
That gives the school a birthday in common with the Chevrolet Blazer sport utility vehicle, which rolled off the assembly line at General Motors for the first time in 1969.
Now the university has its own original 1969 Chevy K5 Blazer to help celebrate.
UAB showed off the classic ride for the first time in Blazer Village at the UAB-South Alabama football game at Legion Field on Sept. 21.
With its original green-and-white paint and green vinyl interior, the Blazer even matches the school colors.
“When we learned that Chevy’s Blazer model was also celebrating 50 years in 2019 and an original green-and-white one was available, we started to think of all the possibilities,” said Allen Bolton, senior vice president for UAB Finance and Administration, in a news release.
The car was purchased with funds from the UAB Education Foundation, according to Bolton.
Local dealership Edwards Chevrolet, a strong UAB supporter, will maintain the 1969 Blazer at no cost at their downtown location.
To learn more about the ongoing commemoration of the university's 50th anniversary, go to uab.edu/50.
Fighting breast cancer
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in American women other than skin cancer.
The Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama has worked to fight the disease by raising more than $8.7 million since 1996 to support research at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB.
The fundraising will continue during October, which is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
The BCRFA and other local organizations and businesses are hosting dozens of events and promotions during October in the Birmingham metropolitan area
The businesses that are doing special promotions and donating money to the BCRFA include Full Moon Bar-B-Que, Cahaba Brewing Company, Tameron Automotive Group and Renasant Bank
As part of the Pink Ribbon Project, fire stations around the state will be selling specially designed t-shirts
Special events and fundraisers will include the 28th annual Komen North Central Alabama Race for the Cure, to be held at Railroad Park on Oct. 12 at 7 a.m.
For more information, including a complete list of events, call 996-5463 or go to bcrfa.org.
New ROTC headquarters
UAB hosted a grand opening for its new Reserve Officers Training Corps facility on Wednesday, Sept. 25. The new 12,800-square-foot training facility — at 828 Eighth Court South — includes three classrooms, nine offices, an 1,860-square-foot auditorium and a cadet lounge and library.
The building also includes a storm shelter, supply and storage space,a gym, locker rooms for men and women and an engagement skills trainer room for simulated combat.
The facility will be a big boost to the ability of cadets to proceed with their training, according to Lt. Col. Karl Reuter, professor of military science.
The gym offers “functional fitness equipment geared toward the new Army Combat Fitness Test, and this is all next to a brand-new quarter-mile track to further work on their physical fitness,” Reuter said.