By Alex Gilbert
Palentine’s Day, the Cupola Yearbook’s annual event that celebrates friendship among the campus community, was held Thursday, February 13, in the Campus Center Mall.
The Cupola Yearbook favored calling the event “Palentine’s Day,” named after February 13’s growing in popularity, yet unofficial, holiday that focuses on celebrating platonic friendship prior to Valentine’s Day.
The term “Palentine” is derived by merging the word “pal” with “Valentine,” to emphasize the day’s focus on friendship rather than romance. Palentine’s Day was a response to gender-neutralize the holiday centered around female friendship, called “Galentine’s Day,” which was coined in season 2 of the hit series Parks and Recreation.
The event began at 7:00 p.m. and lasted until 10:00 p.m., offering students who attended a night full of fun, laughter, snacks, prizes, and singing on stage. Upon arriving at the Campus Center, students were offered free candy, such as Starburst and Airheads, and raffle tickets for a chance to win a selection of prizes.
The prize baskets were an assortment of comforting and cozy gifts, ranging from snacks such as Cheez-its, Oreos, and Sour Patch Kids to small and unique colorful plushies. Larger stand-alone prizes included the Strawberry Crepe Squishmallow, and the LEGO Orchid set, part of the popular LEGO Botanical Collection. In addition to receiving raffle tickets when arriving at the event, students wishing to increase their odds of winning received raffle tickets after participating in activities throughout the night.
To keep attending students fueled throughout the night, the Cupola Yearbook provided soda and pizza, which were purchased for the event from Big Y and Domino’s. The pepperoni and cheese pizzas were a hit, with only a few slices remaining at the end of the event. Isreal John, a student at Palentine’s Day, enjoyed the pizza and noted, “if there’s pizza at an event, I’ll be there.”
To capture the moment and create a lasting memory with friends, students took photos in front of a flowery backdrop, complete with pink hearts to celebrate Palentine’s Day. Students who posed for a picture in front of the backdrop earned bonus raffle tickets.
The Cupola Yearbook’s Palentine’s Day kept its energy levels on high throughout the night, with students belting out their favorite songs on stage with friends and others anticipating their turn to sing. The lyrics of popular music crawled across a nearby projector screen, allowing performers to remember all the words to their favorite beats. Chairs and tables were placed around the stage, which let audience members comfortably cheer on their friends and classmates as they sang their karaoke songs.
The karaoke system and equipment at the event were set up and organized through WNEK The Voice Radio, a student-led club on campus. WNEK, contracted through Cupola Yearbook’s event funds, had representatives at Palentine’s Day working sound and the projector displaying the lyrics. A digital queue, accessible through a QR code, was utilized so students could select songs. The form additionally displayed the current list of queued singers and their song choice, so students would know when they would be up next. Many students were eager to perform, and the queue reached more than twenty performers during the event’s peak.
When hitting the stage, singers often grouped together with their friends, sharing the spotlight and giving encouragement to each other. Some popular songs sung during the event were “Call Me Maybe,” “Sleepwalking,” and “Freak the Freak Out.” An energetic performance of “Cupid Shuffle” had most audience members on their feet dancing along. Singers who took to the stage for karaoke were awarded additional raffle tickets to increase their chances of winning coveted prizes. People who didn’t make it on stage enjoyed their time at the event, eating pizza and cheering on their fellow Golden Bears throughout the night.
Thomas Martin, the treasurer of the Cupola Yearbook, was proud of the effort toward hosting the event. He said, “the Cupola Yearbook worked really hard for people to have a good time and enjoy themselves.”
Palentine’s Day celebrated friendship throughout the night, with enthusiastic performances together on stage and simply sharing good times with friends.
