Recycling the Decades!
YO! Please be sure to check out my blog early next week for stories, pictures, and videos from (drum roll, please!)… SPIRIT WEEKEND!!! Spirit Weekend will take place from 4:45 PM on Friday, September 19, 2008 until 9:00 PM on Sunday, September 21, 2008 and I am SOOOOOO excited!!! So so so excited! 
This year, the theme of RHSA’s annual spirit weekend is “Recycling the Decades.” In a sense, the theme is comprised of two themes, swirled together to make one awesome weekend! First, “recycling!” RHSA’s goal for the 2008-2009 school year is to spread green practices throughout the residence halls and the SUNY New Paltz campus. This year, Spirit Weekend will greatly emphasize how to recycle while living on campus, and what measures residents can take in order to help our environment. Secondly, “the decades” will be the creative and fun portion of our theme. Halls will be all decked out in past decades, as they will be re-using the styles, colors, music, and ideas of the past decades in a fun way in order to demonstrate hall spirit.
So, on Friday, at 4:45 PM, in Hasbrouck Dining Hall, RHSA will sponsor the Kick-Off Barbecue! Halls are asked to come to the barbecue dressed up in recycled materials. At this time, RHSA will distribute the scavenger hunt list.
The Scavenger Hunt, or “the Amazing Hawk Hunt,” will last for 24 hours. It will incorporate getting many residents from each hall involved. The list includes a great deal of community service, including recycling bottles, batteries, and ink cartridges, in addition to writing letters to support St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital and collecting unused school supplies and canned goods. There are portions of the list that will encourage residents to do some research about the historical New Paltz community, to expose participants to exciting aspects that make our community special. There are portions of the list that will promote participants to get new faces involved, and there are parts of the list that are just plain old fun! Also, the Department of Fire, Health, and Safety will be burning a Mock-Residence Hall Room on fire in Old Main Quad on Saturday, at 2:00 PM, which will be worth points for each resident who attends. We are really looking forward to seeing many participants involved with the Amazing Hawk Hunt!
On Sunday morning, each hall will hand in their banners, that should reflect each respective hall, the New Paltz community, and the theme, and then head over to Old Main Quad for the cheer off, which is an awesome opportunity for halls to showcase their spirit! Halls will compete in a plethora of activities, including but not limited to: tug-of-war, dizzy bat race, riddles, pie eating contest, and a sponge race. We are very much looking forward to a 2:30 PM performance by the New Paltz cheerleaders, as well.
The finale of Spirit Weekend will occur on Sunday evening, in Elting Gym at 7:00 PM. Closing ceremonies will begin by a short speech by Maria Davila, Recycling coordinator on campus, followed by the infamous lip sync contest!!
The main goal of Spirit Weekend is to build community within the residence halls on campus. Really, it is a weekend full of bonding, excitement, and fun. Again, next week I will be sure to post pictures, videos, and stories, so check it out. For now, I hope you enjoy the rest of the week, and I hope to see YOU at Spirit Weekend!
Enjoy! –Jessie
