By Alanna Dent, Staff Writer
Susquehanna got festive for fall with pumpkin painting for all right before break.
Susquehanna’s Student Activities Committee (SAC) hosted a pumpkin painting event on Oct. 6. Conveniently located outside Degenstein Campus Center, the free event was available to students from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.
“When coming up with the idea for this event, I was trying to think of traditional fall activities,” said Jessica Pavey, SAC member and pumpkin painting coordinator.
“I knew we had done pumpkin smashing in the past, but that was usually towards the end of the fall season. We needed a ‘disruptive’ event that would allow students to take a short break from their normal studying routine and the stress of midterms to just relax and have fun. I did not think it was a wise idea to carve pumpkins because it usually takes longer than a few moments and the pumpkins tend to go bad faster when they are carved, so I settled on pumpkin painting and decorating with crafts such as stickers, googley eyes, and buttons.”
Pavey went on to discuss the success of the event.
“I was really excited to see so many people show up to the event,” Pavey said. “It was difficult trying to decide how many pumpkins to get because with a newish event you never really know how many people are actually going to participate, especially with a ‘disruptive’ event. But I am very pleased that almost all of the pumpkins ended up getting decorated.”
Pavey said that of the 300 pumpkins that were bought, there were only 30 left over after the event. She estimates that roughly 250 students visited the table to paint pumpkins.
Of the many factors that made this project a success, it is worth noting that the time and location of the pumpkin painting tent was among the biggest benefits for the program. Senior Ashley Sandstorm was very pleased with the timing of the event.
“I think the timing event was great,” Sandstorm said. “They did it right around the lunch rush so it was easy for people who were going in and out of [Degenstein Campus Center] to stop and paint a pumpkin. I think it was a good way to stop thinking about midterms for a few minutes and enjoy yourself. I love fun fall activities like this so I think it was a great stress reliever.”
At the event, there were many different pumpkins. Some of them were painted to have a metallic finish, others were made into funny faces or spooky creatures. Some had little puffball hairdos, while others were paint splattered.
When asked what kind of pumpkins stood out to her, Pavey said:
“I really enjoyed all the pumpkin designs because each had their own unique and intrigue design. I would have to say they were all very cool, but if I had to choose my favorite, then it would have to be the pumpkins where students showed support for their respective organizations that they are a part of. It is really nice to see individuals contributing to the community aspect of our campus that SAC sets out to amplify.”
The Student Activities Committee is the on-campus organization that is responsible for events such as movie nights at Charlie’s, Laser Tag, the Concerts, and the Spring Carnival.
The organization extends a welcome to all students to join them in the Deg Meeting Rooms on Monday nights at 9 p.m. for General Committee meetings.
The committee has also brought an American Idol Country Pop Singer on October 17. The singer, Haeley Vaughn, performed at 8 p.m. in Charlie’s Coffeehouse and welcomed students back after break.
On October 20, the Student Activities Committee will be sponsoring the Trax Homecoming Semiformal. The Victoria Watts Band will be playing and the first 200 people in attendence get a free T-shirt.
Another Student Activities Committee sponsored event is “Ring Making” next Wednesday, October 25. The event with feature ring engraving and is open to the campus community.
The event is free for all participating and, per the facebook post, there will be letters, greek letters, numbers and other symbols with which rings can be decorated.
It will be held from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. in the Degenstein Mellon Lounge.
