Hurst Homecoming

Hello and Happy Homecoming Weekend!

Homecoming Facebook cover from MU's page

Homecoming and Family weekend here at the 'Hurst is coming to an end tonight. It has been a great week of alumni and Mercyhurst Laker spirit. Homecoming Weekend at Mercyhurst is often called Hurst Fest. Some of the things that went on include: a golf outing, athletic alumni sporting events, Friday Night Lights, bingo, 5K race, tailgates, performances, Hurst Fest activities (inflatables, photo booth, food, and fun), and of course the homecoming football game and crowning of the 2012 Homecoming King and Queen.

Since I am the MSG Event Coordinator, like I've mentioned in other posts, a chunk of homecoming festivities were my responsibility. All homecoming nominations, family activities, and crowning of the king and queen fell on my to do list. This year we had record breaking nominations for king and queen, which is outstanding! It makes me happy that so many people wanted to participate in such a rich MU tradition. This year our homecoming King was Adam Ferrari and Queen Kaleigh Hubert.

2012 Mercyhurst University Homecoming Court, and returning 2011 King and Queen on left

Following the game MSG and SAC held all of the Hurst Fest activities. This year we had an obstacle course bounce house, caramel apples, cider, hot chocolate, cotton candy, popcorn, donuts, tshirts, raffles, photo booths, a huge petting zoo, and the big yellow Food Truck from our dining services.


Though the weather was pretty crappy for most of the day, it did clear up in small patches. Our football team also won against Slippery Rock which made for a great homecoming weekend.

I would also rewind to last Monday, I told you MTV's Andrew Jenks would be speaking at Mercyhurst as a part of MSG's Distinguished Speaker Series. I just wanted to make mention that he was great and we had about 200 kids come out. It's kind of cool that I can say I had a celebrity in my car! I had to bring him to and from his hotel to campus. Students seem to really like him and loved the meet and greet after his presentation. His next season premiers November 12th on MTV!

Another great pic off of MU's Facebook page

So that is all I have for this week! I have a paper to write and some homework to finish.

Have a wonderful week everyone :)

WOW.

Hello There!

I'm sorry it has been so long since I've posted to my blog. I've been busy with my time away from the 'Hurst. This summer I had so many adventures. For starters, I traveled with my Faculty Lead Study Abroad (FSAT – when you become a Laker, you'll get familiar with that term!) to Italy, Greece, and Turkey. It was an experience of a life time! Since this is a catch up blog, I think I'd do Europe more justice is I dedicate one of my next blogs to the trip versus cramming it in here. But enjoy a few of the pictures below.

Shortly after returning from my two week excursion to Europe, I celebrating a big birthday. I turned 21 in Las Vegas! It was wonderful, though not my first time there. The food was amazing, the shows, and the sites, it was a dazzling way to turn the big two-one. I went with my parents, my boyfriend Matt, and my roommate Andrea. If anyone is familiar with the show Pawn Stars, you'll enjoy this pic! They were filming the day I visited the shop and I saw the gang. So I just had to buy something as a souvenir... This is a two-dollar bill signed by all the stars – Ricky, Richard Sr., Big Hoss, and of course my favorite, Chumlee. So if you're a fan, be sure to watch for me somewhere on the third season if they happen to air the items I was there for. 



So if we fast forward through summer hang-out sessions and long hours of grocery store work, I found myself right back at the 'Hurst in Erie, PA. I had to come back a few weeks early due to Residence Life training. It's weird, I'm a senior living in sophomore area, because that is where I am an RA. I enjoy it though, I get to meet a lot of new people I would never probably have associated with.

Also during my weeks back, I was preparing for a bunch of Mercyhurst Student Government (MSG) events before classes started up. Like our Service Day BBQ, the Upperclassmen BBQ, dances, speakers, and Hurst Fest – our homecoming festivities. MSG and SAC (Student Activities Council) are hosting their annual Fall Ball this Friday at 7 p.m. It's always a great time and it is sort of like Mercyhurst's version of a homecoming dance. There is going to be some great food this year, I picked a menu with Buffalo chicken dip, spinach artichoke dip, chicken kabobs, dessert shooters, and chocolate covered strawberries. Hopefully, the weather is beauuutiful, and it doesn't rain.

The next major thing MSG has going on is our Distinguished Speakers Series. This Monday night we are hosting MTV's Andrew Jenks. He is a filmmaker with a show on MTV about not judging a book by its cover and living in different situations. We are super excited to have him on campus, and I'll definitely have to blog about the event next week!

My final piece of update is Hurst Fest. As I mentioned, it is Mercyhurst's Homecoming tradition. This year Hurst Fest is Sat., Sept. 22nd, our football team will be playing Slippery Rock University. There is always a lot of hype about homecoming, so I can't wait to fill you in on the details. Another exciting factor of Hurst Fest 2012, is that I am actually on the ballot for Homecoming Queen! How exciting? I am so flattered that my friends and peers would think to nominate me... Voting started today, so fingers crossed... Maybe I'll score enough votes to be Queen? I'd love to have a crown!

Oh well, that is all I have for now... SO sorry that I haven't been blogging, I promise that will change. Get ready for my senior year at MU!

:)

Spring Fest 2012

I'm about to blog about one of the greatest Mercyhurst experiences I've ever had. 

It was more than 6 months in the making, but Spring Fest 2012 has come and gone. MSG Events Coordinator, Shannon Kissel and I have been working very hard all year planning this classic weekend-long event, and I must say, it was a total success!

One happy Laker from her Walking Taco!

This year Spring Fest was a Cinco de Mayo theme, let me give you a run down of all that went on:

It all began at 8 a.m. on Thursday morning when Shannon, Adam (next year's SAC Chair) and I took a huge van to Sam's Club to buy tons of water, Gatorade, snacks, and dressing room hospitality. After 30 cases of drinks, and the other random things, our 15 passenger van was full!

The fun really began Thursday afternoon when two huge trucks pulled into Mercyhurst University. These two trucks contained all the "magic" for our annual Spring Fest concert. We had tons of volunteers, two MSG executive boards, and two SAC executive boards, plus the production company building the stage, setting the lights, and hooking up sound. It took about four for five hours to set, and everyone was tired and sweaty when we were finished.

Friday afternoon Shannon and I planned a Walking Taco station to give out 300 free "tacos in a bag" to students who walked by in Garvey Park. They were served from a huge yellow Culinary Cab that our dining services, Parkhurst, debuted for the first time that afternoon. If you don't know what a walking taco is, it's a bag of Doritos crushed up topped with taco meat, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, and salsa. They were absolutely delicious and they students loved them!

Friday night was also the concert. Before the concert while students were loading in and between sets we had one of MU's own, DJ b-Lang, spin records for us. He was awesome and got the party going. Then we had a STOMP-like percussion group called Industrial Rhythm perform the opening slot to really pump students up for this year's headliner – Sean Kingston. When Sean Kingston took the stage, it was ridiculous. I don't think I've ever seen a Spring Fest more packed. We gave out 1500 free tickets, and we got over 95% of them back in the doors, and after letting in a few stragglers, we were at maximum capacity. I can't believe we sold out and packed in a full house! During the concert I even got to go on stage and throw out glow-sticks, sombreros, and tshirts.

Sean Kingston performing in our Mercyhurst Athletic Center

When Sean Kingston took the stage, he sang all of the songs that everyone know. These included: Fire Buring, Eenie Meenie, Like a Melody, Beautiful Girls, and Letting Go, just to name a few. He even sang a new track off of the album he is releasing shortly. It's called Back 2 Life, it features TI and Nicki Minaj and it was a hot beat! Also, another special touch was when he got a few girls to come on stage when he sang Beautiful Girls. Not going to lie, I was a little jealous that Mr. Kingston didn't ask me on stage! But that's okay, I did snag a picture with him later – just Shannon, Sean Kingston and me!

Now immediately following the concert, we have to tear down the stage we just built, load it all in the trucks, and send them on their way. This was my third year helping with the stage for Spring Fest and every year, it breaks my heart to build a stage and then rip it down only a few hours later. When everything was said and done Friday night, and the trucks were pulling away, it was about 2:30 in the morning. And we were only half way done with the weekend at the point!

Saturday afternoon was the last portion of the Spring Fest activities. We emptied out a parking lot on campus and held a Cinco de Mayo of our own. It was complete with Erie's own, The Romantic Era, DJ b-Lang for a second day (because he's that great!!!), an inflatable obstacle course, a giant dual lane slip-n-slide, photo booths, air brush tattoos, a sandy candy bar, a caricaturist, Rita's Italian Ice and a full Mexican fiesta buffet. The day activities ran from 1 to 5 p.m. and it was a great flow of students. It was wonderful to see all of these students appreciating and enjoying something that Shannon and I have worked on so hard all year. Though this was my last event (and blog) as the SAC Chair, I am honored to do it all over again next year as MSG Events Coordinator (and blog about that too!). Both the MSG and SAC boards and volunteers surprised Shannon and I with flowers at the end of the weekend, it was too sweet and I really appreciate all of the hard work everyone put into this event for me. From building the stage with our bare hands on Thursday, during the concert and stage break down on Friday, and throughout the day on Saturday, I was truly blessed to have worked with such wonderful people.

Shannon on the left and me on the right after a loooong Spring Fest weekend!

I am so honored that the Mercyhurst community keeps giving me opportunities to do things like this. I get to meet awesome people and work with a fantastic group of students on a day to day basis. I know that so many students across campus, whether they vocalize it or not, enjoy what students like me do. I promise to continue to seize each opportunity that comes my way, to give students the best time on campus as possible. Because to me, this is what it means to be a MU Laker. Carpe Diem!

Caribbean Night and Jamnesty

Hi guys, so this past weekend SAC had two really great events – Caribbean Night and Jamnesty.
 
Unfortunately, I have not been feeling all that great this weekend. I woke up on Friday feeling a cold coming on and then some point on Saturday I lost my voice completely! I was able to make it to Caribbean Night, which was a HUGE hit. 250 students piled into our Student Union to enjoy Caribbean beats and treats! There was a buffet of diverse foods, my favorite being the "tres leche cake." I have had it before from a bakery back home in Pittsburgh, but this one was made with some authentic spices and was out of this world delicious!

I did not make it to Jamnesty, but it was another success. It was part of Amnesty International and the local Erie rock band, The Romantic Era played. If you read a few of my previous posts, you will see that they are a regular for SAC programming.

This weekend is the biggest event that SAC and MSG have to offer, Spring Fest. Co-planner Shannon Kissel and I have been working very hard since early December hammering out all of the details that it will entail. I can't wait to share all the details with you, but for now, I really need my rest to be ready for this week of Spring Fest to come.

Pray that I have my voice back by tomorrow and that I'm feeling better!

Kids 'N Sibs

Whew! I feel like it was just yesterday when I last posted! This week sure flew by.

This weekend at the 'Hurst, SAC held its annual Kids 'N Sibs weekend. Kids 'N Sibs is a weekend long event where SAC holds a variety of activities on both Friday and Saturday for Mercyhurst Students to do with their siblings. Most "kids" bring "sibs" or cousins, or just friends from other schools. Older, younger, or the same age, it doesn't matter! Though you do not need a sibling to attend, in fact I, personally, am an only child and have attended this event in the past with no one to claim as my "sib."
 
It was an "Under the Sea" theme this year, on Friday night we had a treasure scavenger hunt that lead groups around campus to find clues to where the hidden treasure was. We also had under the sea creatures at a build-a-bear station and the movie "Dolphin Tale" for all to enjoy. Also, notice the Kids 'N Sibs t-shirts in the pictures below, I designed them and they were a huge hit!

My favorite though, of the whole weekend, was Saturday! Saturday was set up with more under sea fun complete with an inflatable obstacle course, a shark slide (see below), more sea creature build-a-bears, face painting, balloon animals, Chick-fil-A, cotton candy, popcorn, and to top it off... Rita's Italian Ice – Swedish FISH flavored of course! Throughout the day on Saturday, there was also chances to win 2 iPads! This was a great event and more and more students come out every year. Maybe once you're a Laker too you'll be bringing up some brothers or sisters to our Kids 'N Sibs weekend, it's always a fun time filled with tons of free stuff!

Check out some of my SAC Board, a BIG shout out to Rosemary (blonde in the front, covering her mouth) and Megan (far right/twin with the headband and jeans) for co-planning this awesome event!

This is Louie the Laker, MU's mascot sneaking some cotton candy...

Next weekend we have the final Laker Spirit Club (LSC) event of the year, it's on Friday and it's a baseball game. Then on Friday night we have a Caribbean Night that we are sponsoring with the Multicultural Center and a Jamnesty concert on Saturday night. After next weekend we have one of the biggest events of the year – Spring Fest! I know I've been mentioning it a little here and there, but I'll be sure to give you the total run down on it next week, all I can say about it for now is that it's on Cinco de Mayo and I'll be meeting Sean Kingston!

Well I'm off to finish a little Sunday night homework, talk to you next time!
- Jenna

P.S. I just wanted to take a quick moment and thank you for taking the time to read my blog, if you ever have any questions or want to know more about SAC, LSC, or MSG or anything else here at the 'Hurst, feel free to comment or shoot me an email :)

Bingo and Mystery and Prizes, OH MY!

What a world wind of events have been going on since I've last posted!

Let me start off by bragging a little, as you know, I am currently the Student Activities Council Chair. This means I over see a board of 10 students and help put on events every weekend. But as the year comes closer, and closer to an end positions are changing. I applied for the Mercyhurst Student Government (MSG) Events Coordinator position, and I got it!

I'll still have some of the same responsibilities, like co-planning Hurst Fest, Spring Fest (which is 18 days away!!!), and all the dances, but I'll also get to organize Mercyhurst's annual Homecoming and Distinguished Speakers Series. I'm so excited! I'll continue to blog right here, but my gears will be shifting as I start in the new position... Still events, just the other side of our student organizations.

Representing the 'Burgh with some of these prizes!

But, until then, I have to tell you about this past weekend. Our Laker Spirit Club hosted a summer time themed booth at a home men's lacrosse game. We had Rita's Italian Ice by the bucket-fulls, leis, and beach balls. It was fun to see the crowd getting pumped in the stands, until it started to rain. But all in all, it was a great show of MU Laker Spirit!

Friday night SAC presented a "Rep Yo Hood" Bingo. It sounds crazy, I know, but tons of kids showed up to win hometown prizes like, Buffalo Wild Wing Sauce, and Primanti Bro.'s gift cards (that's from Pittsburgh, ;) my own hood). We had so many random things for prizes and it was funny to watch Lakers fight over them, like an American flag, or Welch's jelly (did you know Welch's farms are located in North East/Erie?). No matter what the theme of the bingo, the mix of free food and/or competition really seems to draw a big crowd here.

Me, acting a little silly with the iPad tickets...

Then on Saturday night, SAC got a little fancy and had a Murder Mystery Dinner! We had 160 students make reservations for a night of fun, laughter, an Italian style dinner, all with a little mystery. The theme of this particular murder mystery was "Very Desperate Housewives" so naturally, all the girls on SAC wore our cute dresses, high heels, and pearl earrings! In addition to bragging rights, winners of the mystery won gift cards. SAC also held raffles for 10 $25 gift cards to places like the Olive Garden, Valerio's (an Erie favorite that catered this dinner), and the Millcreek Mall to name a few. Also, one lucky Laker won an iPad that we raffled off!

This past weekend was full of fun, bingos are always a win here, and we're even getting feedback that students would love to have a murder mystery dinner come back to campus again!

It's weekends like this where students are so into the events we put on that makes my job all worth the while. I love it!

Well, next weekend we have our annual Kids 'N Sibs weekend, where lots of Lakers bring up a sibling to show them what a good time at the 'Hurst is all about... Talk to you then :)


Jenna

3V3 and Party Rock!

Hello Everyone! How have you been since we last checked in? I've been up to planning some really fun events for the Mercyhurst community. 

This past weekend SAC held two really great events! On Friday we had a 3 versus 3 basketball tournament. We had teams of three sign up to compete for Visa gift cards, and bragging rights of course. Over ten teams came out to show their skills and shoot hoops. All the teams that came had an awesome time and so did SAC.

On Saturday, Mercyhurst had it's annual Major Day and Laker Live In. SAC wanted to really show potential Lakers what MU weekends are all about. So, we had a little event we called "Party Rock!" It was a little concert with the light and poppy artist JD Eicher, hilarious comedian Erin Jackson, and Erie's own rock band, The Romantic Era. If you click on the performers names, it will take you to their respective websites and you hear them play or find out a little more about them. Along with the wonderful music and funny jokes provided, we also served 500 Chick-fil-A sandwiches! It was a fun night and I think all of the students and Laker Live Ins really enjoyed the event. Look at the pictures below!

Next weekend Mercyhurst will be on Easter break, but I'll be sure to check in to tell you what I'm doing/what we are preparing for the following weekend. Enjoy the Easter holiday!

Artist JD Eicher

 

 

The Romantic Era