UNMC history: A different type of Oktoberfest

In the early 1970s, UNMC opened its doors to the community for a unique event — a combined open house and health fair called Oktoberfest.  

Sponsored by the Faculty Wives Club, Oktoberfest started in 1973 for staff and student families and evolved into a community-wide event in the years that followed. The goal of Oktoberfest was to give citizens of Nebraska and western Iowa a fuller understanding of UNMC’s programs and the growth of campus facilities. 

Visitors could take guided tours of the Eppley Cancer Institute, the virology lab, the Nebraska Psychiatric Institute, the drug information center, the Meyer Children’s Rehabilitation Institute (now the Munroe-Meyer Institute), and the McGoogan Library.   

Hands-on activities included making a plaster cast and drilling plaster teeth. UNMC faculty and staff demonstrated fetal monitoring, a bone scan in nuclear medicine, heat screening in internal medicine, resuscitation, radiologic body scans and argon lasers. Visitors also viewed a surgical room prepped for an appendectomy. 

Students presented on exhibits which were made available by volunteer services and various departments to share information about the health science fields. 

An essential part of Oktoberfest was health screenings and promotion of healthy lifestyles. Visitors could have UNMC professionals test their blood pressure and hearing, as well as screen for glaucoma. They could have their height, weight and skinfold thickness measured at the Swanson Center for Nutrition and learn about healthy nutrition. 

In 1978, the Oktoberfest planners added the mini marathon. Olympian and world record holder Jim Ryun competed in that event in 1980. At the Oktoberfest festivities on campus, he discussed the importance of running for health. In 1981, television fitness guru and author Richard Simmons also made an appearance.

Special entertainment at Oktoberfest included music performed by the Cornhusker Pep Band in 1974. The Strategic Air Command stage band and the Benson High School German band performed in 1977. The Shriner clowns entertained with their mini train. Slim Goodbody from the "Captain Kangaroo" television show presented health tips for the children in 1979. Darth Vader made an appearance in 1982, when the Oktoberfest theme was "Space Age Medicine." 

Oktoberfest was free to the public, including parking and refreshments. At its height, 10,000 visitors streamed through campus, learning about healthy habits and UNMC programs. Oktoberfest ended after the 1983 event, capping a successful 10-year run.