Aggies celebrate holidays through finals

Though final projects and exam reviews loom in the air, students at Utah State University found their holiday cheer at events like Holiday in the Hub and The Festival of Trees.

Even Big Blue was out and about last week, donning a Santa outfit and greeting elementary kids.

“We’ve been doing this for five or six years,” said USU retail services manager Jaime Bradford about Holiday in the Hub. “We started it to help the Sub for Santa program that Access and Diversity sponsors, and we hope to raise enough money so that they can sponsor all the kids that have applied.”

The event featured food demos, cookie decorating, free treats and more in the dining area of the TSC. Donations for the Sub For Santa program were taken and students were invited to give whatever they felt reasonable.

“It’s a lot of talking to people,” said Rebecca Maynard, the marketing coordinator for the event. “Every year we get volunteers and business to come out and cook delicious food for students, and this year is no different.”

Upstairs, another event was going on. The Festival of Trees is an annual program by the Utah State University Student Association where trees are decorated and donated from different groups on campus. The trees are then voted on and given to families in need.

Last week, elementary kids from all over Cache Valley visited the festival and got the opportunity to sit on Big Blue’s lap.

“Everyone always jumps on the opportunity to visit the trees,” Lexxie Rob said. “We have multiple elementary groups coming here throughout the day just to do crafts, play games, see the trees, and of course, see Big Blue.”

While there may still be a week before the holiday vacation starts, there are plenty of festivities to enjoy on campus, such as the annual christmas concert by the USU Octaves on Monday night.

—erickwood97@gmail.com

@GrahamWoodMedia