One of John Brown University’s long standing traditions is Fall Fest. This year the event took place on Oct. 18, from 4-6 p.m. just a few days after students returned from fall break. Fall Fest was put on by Student Events and Activities and featured pumpkin painting, live music, pie and flag football.

As Fall Fest drew nearer, the SEA team met many times to make sure the whole thing was pulled off without a hitch.

“I would meet with them every week. We would talk, we would brainstorm, then they’d go off and do some work and I’d go off and do some work,” SEA student director Aidan Stinson said.

This year, SEA brought in a new band to help set the mood. The live music was provided by The Mountain Gypsies, a bluegrass band from Northwest Arkansas.

“The music was really fun. The people that came to sing were very talented and they had a very good song selection,” sophomore Julia White said.

Another new addition to fall fest this year was flag football. The flag football match was held a little away from the rest of the fall fest but close enough that students could watch the game and cheer on the different teams.

“I think I was mainly with flag football this year so I think that’s maybe my favorite part because it was just goofy and I had no control the entire time. I would call a penalty but it would get overturned by the players so it was awesome,” Stinson, who acted as the referee, said.

For SEA, Fall Fest isn’t just another fun event that they provide for the students. SEA’s goal for Fall Fest is that it would help students to better connect with the JBU community and take a break from midterms.

“Our goal is always to build community, [to] make sure people can have a space where they feel at home and they can make memories with their friends,” Stinson said.

Students took advantage of this much needed break that was provided to them, coming and going for the whole two-hour period.

“I do think people should go to fall fest because it's a good casual social gathering and a nice way to relax during midterms,” White said.

The next SEA event is just around the corner. On Nov. 1 SEA will be hosting Trick or Suite, a campus wide scavenger hunt.

Photo courtesy of Helen Colop