Friendsgiving event unites students on campus over the holiday
On Nov. 23, Utah State University’s Inclusion Center is partnering with Residence Life to host a Friendsgiving for those staying on campus for Thanksgiving.
The event will take place from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m., according to Quinn Balser, a USU sophomore studying sociology, who is a resident assistant and chief organizer of the event.
In previous years, the event has been hosted by Residence Life and sponsored by the Inclusion Center, and this year will continue that tradition, Balser said.
Erika Lindstrom, USU’s gender and sexuality coordinator, started the event when she was an area coordinator in Residence Life to best suit the needs of students who couldn’t celebrate Thanksgiving with their families.
Balser said the event is focused towards international students, as well as those who may not be able to travel due to work, health or other complications. Anyone with an A-number can attend, they added.
“Some students can’t afford to go home; they’ll feel lonely without their roommates and friends. This will give them people to talk with and be with,” Balser said.
Camden Opfar, a junior majoring in recreational administration and the financial adviser for the event, said the event is meant to provide a greater community to the university, especially for those in Residence Life.
“This event is catered towards those with food insecurity, especially with most dining locations being closed for the holidays. We want those people to be coming to our event,” Opfar said. “We want to make a more inclusive community and just combining everyone of all different backgrounds.”
Balser said oftentimes, because of the short Thanksgiving break, international students don’t have the chance to go home to be with their family, so the event will provide them with an opportunity to experience the U.S. tradition.
“For a lot of international students, this is their first holiday experience. We don’t want them to be left out at all,” Balser said.
Off Premise Catering will provide a traditional Thanksgiving feast, Opfar added, complete with turkey, stuffing and even adding a college twist of macaroni and cheese.
The event isn’t just geared towards international students, but also students that may not feel comfortable going home, especially if they have unstable or unwelcoming home environments, Balser said.
For Cristina Chirvasa, a senior and the public relations manager of USU’s Queer Student Alliance, the event can foster a sense of family and provide support if there is little at home.
“Having that space with your friends during the holiday season, and not be reminded of the fact that your family doesn’t support you while other people are able to go home to their families — it kind of fills that void,” Chirvasa said.
To help advertise for the event, Balser, Opfar, and other members of their planning committee put flyers and QR codes around campus for students to RSVP for the event.
“I’m honestly pretty confident about it; we just need people to sign up,” Balser said, adding that they hope as many people will show up to this year’s event as did to last year’s Friendsgiving, which hosted over 100 students.
Having so many people attend the event, Chirvasa added, helped highlight the ways the holiday could unite many individuals of different backgrounds, ideas and traditions, while also giving them a safe space to eat delicious food.
“It really highlights the importance of the (Inclusion Center) program and what impact it can have on people’s lives,” Chirvasa said.