The Edinboro University Programming Board (UPB) hosted its annual Snowfest celebration from 8 p.m. to midnight on Saturday, Feb. 27 at the Frank G. Pogue Student Center.
Students trudged through the snow, appropriately deposited by a steady weekend front, to enjoy the free activities.
The event commenced with a Mario Kart tournament in the food court which began at 6 p.m.
By the 8 p.m start time, the atmosphere had increased in both intensity and festivity, according to attendee Maura Sirianni.
“I walked into the UC and was interested as to where all the noise and music was coming from,” said Sirianni, a freshman journalism major.
The music Sirianni mentioned was that of JD Eicher and the Goodnights, a local indie rock band performing live, whose big sound welcomed students upon entry into the building.
Following the trail of the music, students passed Scot Cinema, where signs advertised free popcorn and the movie to be shown later, “2012.”
The Cyber Cafe boasted free snow cones, and a stand just outside the multipurpose room offered students the chance to have hats airbrushed.
Entering the center of Snowfest, the multipurpose room, students were treated to free cotton candy and a closer look and listen at Eicher and his band, who entertained the crowd from a raised platform.
Yet, judging by the long line of eager students, the event’s biggest attraction was a fenced-off section in the corner of the room – a small, iceless skating rink.
The rink which, according to graduate assistant for student activities Kristen McLaughlin, was composed of a material much like polyethylene plastic, used for cutting boards, that was “sprayed with silicone spray to make it accessible to skate on.”
“I thought it was impressive,” said Sirianni of the rink. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”
While students enjoyed the complimentary skating, food and entertainment, the event did beg a question: Why celebrate the snow?
“Why not?” asked McLaughlin. “It's a celebration of our environment. We get a lot of snow six months out of the nine that we are here, so why not do something fun?”
This embracement of Edinboro’s notable winter weather is nothing new. McLaughlin explained that Snowfest was established anywhere from 10 to 15 years ago and was originally the responsibility of the faculty before the authority was transferred to students.
She added that in past years Snowfest has included outdoor events, such as a largest snowball competition and hot tubs, the latter of which was not well-received, but since snow has been absent from recent incarnations, the UPB did not account for the snow, especially such a great magnitude.
If students were, by chance, dissatisfied with the events at Snowfest or any other UPB-hosted event, they cannot simply blame the organizers.
“The UPB selects [activities] from conferences that we attend, but students are more that welcome to come to general meetings to voice their opinions if they want to see something different,” said McLaughlin.
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