MADISON, Wis. — It’s Homecoming Week at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a week stepped in traditions of block parties, pep rallies, pink flamingoes on Bascom Hill and Homecoming buttons.
It’s because of that last tradition that Pete Christianson stands out among alumni of the university.
The Wisconsin Alumni Association has produced a Homecoming button or pin since the event began in 1911; of the 112 made, Christianson has collected 102.
Christianson has no shortage of school spirit. The fourth-generation Badger graduated in 1971 and earned a law degree in 1977 and later served as the Alumni Association board president in 2009.
In 2002, he first began collecting the buttons.
“Our son was just starting law school and they had this button, “Badger Power, Flower Power” button,” he recalled, “and I got to thinking, you know, I wonder how many homecoming buttons are out there, and it just sort of took off from there.”
The buttons were made of paper during World War II, and today they’re just stickers, but each one tells a story and reflects the time in which it was created.
Along the way, Christianson has collected other UW-themed buttons and just about anything Bucky he could get his hands on. There are pennants, postcards and even a poster from a movie starring Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch.
Thanks to contributions from friends, garage sales and eBay, Christianson has chronicled UW history, especially football.
For now, he’s continuing to scour for the last ten buttons to complete his collection.
“I’ve got hundreds of these. Once you start, it’s like, you know, it’s like eating peanuts, you know? You just can’t. You just can’t stop,” he said.
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