The Archway

Issue date: 12/4/09 Section: Campus News

Festival of Lights celebrated a variety of religious holidays during the lighting ceremony with prayers, songs, and candle lightings. (Nick Millard)

It is time to start getting into the holiday spirit! With less than two weeks until finals (yikes!) the holidays are right around the corner. No matter what holiday you celebrate, or even if you do not celebrate at all, it is a great time of year. Happy Christmahanukwanzaakah I always say. All that holiday spirit was brought to campus this week with the celebration of the 33rd Annual Festival of Lights on Wednesday evening. Hopefully everyone got a chance to experience the festivities, but in case you missed it, here's a run-down of what happened.

The Festival of Lights is an annual event here on campus that is hosted by the Student Alumni Association (SAA), the Center for Student Involvement (CSI), and the Office of Alumni Relations, but all of the 80 plus student organizations are represented.

There were many activities in the Rotunda during the day including tons of arts and crafts tables each hosted by a different club and each with their own craft. From tea light bags to gingerbread cookies and holiday bags, it was an easy way to make some holiday gifts, especially with our college budgets!

Surprise visitors Santa, Mrs. Claus, and their famous friend Frosty the Snowman, were all there taking pictures with their favorite Bryant students. If you had your picture taken, it should be posted on the SAA website very shortly.

In the evening, the festivities started with a Christmas dinner in the Salmanson Dining Hall, to which seniors were admitted for free, and there was even a lovely reception for any Alumni that came to visit campus for this event.

A little later into the evening, guitarist Dave Binder filled the Rotunda with the sounds of holiday music as the formal ceremony was about to begin around 7:30. Everyone who attended was given a lighted candle to hold during the ceremony that lit up the dome in the Rotunda.

It was such a fantastic and different experience to have everyone gathered together under sheer candlelight. In order to celebrate the diverse heritage that is Bryant University, the ceremony featured religious readings and spiritual music from around the globe, and under everyone's candlelight, it was again magical.

President Ronald Machtley then led the procession, still by candlelight, to the traditional lighting of the Campus Christmas Tree and Menorah hosted outside of the brand new Interfaith Center. Although the temperature was in the 50's outside, which is quite warm for this time of year, it was nice to be back inside the Bryant Center with refreshments, while the Bryant Jazz Ensemble played some of their tunes following the tree lighting.

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