What creates a strong community identity and how can that identity decline over time? And once a town's brand has faded, is it possible to bring back the gleam? These are the questions tackled in "Rekindling the Flame: Processes of Identity Resurrection," a recent paper by PhD candidate Matthew Metzger (who starts next fall as an assistant professor at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs), and Professor Alan Meyer and Associate Professor Jennifer Howard-Grenville, both of the college's management department. Funded through a generous grant from former Duck athletic director Pat Kilkenny and his wife Stephanie, and accepted for publication in the prestigious Academy of Management Journal, the paper describes how Eugene grew organically into Track Town USA in the early 1970s--thanks to an ardent band of runners, a dedicated audience, and the iconic setting of Hayward Field. By the 1990s, however, many folks felt the magic had faded. It took the 2008 return of the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials for the town to seize back its heritage--an effort that seems to have succeeded, judging from the buzz surrounding the 2012 trials scheduled June 21–July 1.