A Fine FAREwell
With the help of two generous local businessmen, Dan Reber and Jimmy Thomas Sr., The Food Court at Reber-Thomas opened on Aug. 19, 1992. The namesakes donated $1.4 million — the remaining funds needed to complete Liberty’s first large dining facility. The building has undergone many renovations over the years but will be replaced by a new dining hall opening this fall. Students helped to give the old building a celebratory sendoff before the end of the semester. On April 25, Liberty Dining and Sodexo, Liberty’s dining services provider, held “Rotapolooza,” a night of food, music, local vendors, and more. Students were also able to purchase commemorative “R.I.P. the Rot” T-shirts.
Students were able to purchase customized ‘R.I.P. the Rot’ T-shirts at the ‘Rotapolooza’ event.
The new Reber-Thomas Dining Center, located by Liberty Lake, will provide students with even more dining options than before and feature large seating areas both inside and outside the building, with a peak capacity of 2,900 seats. The two-story, 120,000-square-foot structure will offer an estimated 25 food stations containing various meal options for students, including an allergen-free zone, a bake shop, and an exhibition kitchen station for hosting student cooking classes.
The ongoing construction of the Reber-Thomas Dining Center
In recent years, Liberty Dining has received a number of accolades for its continued efforts to accommodate students’ needs. This year, Liberty was awarded an A+ rating for campus food and placed No. 3 out of 27 schools in Virginia and No. 19 in the country by Niche.com.
A Familiar Ring
Liberty University Co-founder Dr. Elmer Towns has worn the same ring every day, for over 50 years, that commemorates the school’s founding in 1971.
The ring, engraved with “CO-FOUNDER” on the side, features an eight-sided octagon (symbolizing the old Thomas Road Baptist Church’s eight-sided chapel) and a Bible with a flame (representing the school motto “Knowledge Aflame”). The ring also has a “Lynchburg Baptist College” banner (Liberty’s original name) and includes Towns’ initials on the inside.
Towns said he and Liberty’s founder, the late Dr. Jerry Falwell, special ordered the rings soon after Liberty’s inaugural year began. They had a crest designed for the university and commissioned a school ring manufacturer to make rings for every student.
Towns has a special attachment to the relic from Liberty’s past.
“I wouldn’t take it off for anything, ever,” he said.
