STEPHENVILLE, Texas \u2014 The annual L.V. Risinger Memorial Bonfire will blaze once again this Friday, Oct. 16. The bonfire event, part of Tarleton State\u2019s ongoing Homecoming Week itinerary, will be held at the Tarleton State University Agriculture Center at 8 p.m.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A long-standing Tarleton State tradition, the bonfire goes as far back as the 1920s. The celebration has since been renamed for alumna L.V. Risinger, who bravely defended the bonfire from rival North Texas Agricultural College students in 1939. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Each year, the Plowboys spirit organization assembles the towering bonfire as a tribute to spirit and tradition. The Plowboys work tirelessly for months, building a space for alumni, students and the Stephenville community to gather as one. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere is nothing quite like seeing our Plowboys\u2019 hard work light up the sky and bring our Tarleton State family together,\u201d said Lathes Towns, Executive Director of Traditions, Spirit, and Family Engagement. \u201cThat flame, like our Texan spirit, will always burn bright.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Parking space at the agriculture center is reserved, and those without an entry pass will not be permitted to park onsite. Attendees are strongly encouraged to use the free shuttle service, with rides to and from the agriculture center available at two pickup points: Stephenville City Park and the Tarleton State campus, at the corner of Rudder Way and Cain Avenue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shuttle service to the bonfire begins at 6 p.m., with the last shuttle departing at 8:45 p.m. Return shuttle service ends at 11 p.m. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Attendees are encouraged to arrive early to enjoy the food trucks offering snacks and beverages for purchase. Clear bags are required, and no outside alcohol, food or drinks \u2014 including water \u2014 will be allowed on the shuttle or at the bonfire. Water will be available onsite. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Only ADA-compliant service animals are permitted at the bonfire. ADA-compliant shuttles will be available at each pickup location. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For those unable to attend the bonfire in person, a livestream<\/a> of the event will be offered. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For more information about Tarleton State Homecoming and live updates, visit tarleton.edu\/homecoming\/<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" STEPHENVILLE, Texas \u2014 The annual L.V. Risinger Memorial Bonfire will blaze once again this Friday, Oct. 16. The bonfire event, part of Tarleton State\u2019s ongoing Homecoming Week itinerary, will be …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1084,"featured_media":55702,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","wds_primary_category":382,"footnotes":""},"categories":[382,424,425,421],"tags":[432,442,456],"class_list":["post-55701","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homepage","category-arts-events","category-campus-community","category-featuredstories","tag-alumni","tag-community-events","tag-stephenville"],"acf":{"image":false},"author_meta":{"display_name":"jdouglas","author_link":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/author\/jdouglas\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/65\/2026\/10\/Bonfire-Photo-1-300x200.jpeg","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["_Homepage<\/a>","Arts & Events<\/a>","Campus & Community<\/a>","Featured Stories<\/a>"],"unlinked":["_Homepage<\/span>","Arts & Events<\/span>","Campus & Community<\/span>","Featured Stories<\/span>"]},"tags":{"linked":["Alumni<\/a>","Community Events<\/a>","Stephenville<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Alumni<\/span>","Community Events<\/span>","Stephenville<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":0,"relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 13 hours ago","modified":"Updated 15 hours ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on October 12, 2026","modified":"Updated on October 12, 2026"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on October 12, 2026 10:00 am","modified":"Updated on October 12, 2026 8:43 am"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1084"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55701"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55701\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":55723,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55701\/revisions\/55723"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/55702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}