including (from left to right) Jennifer Stone, Brody Shoffner, Ariana Rose and Patrick Johnson.
Preface Photo/TRICIA MCCANN
By: TRICIA MCCANN
Staff Writer
Ghouls, zombies and screams filled the basement of Northside this Halloween as local children walked the campus for IU South Bend’s “Boo to You” event.
The event was hosted by a new campus group called Helping Other People (H.O.P.) as well as the Ernestine M. Raclin School Of the Arts, and funded by the Student Government Association.
Volunteers from across campus came together to decorate, scare and raise food donations for the Food Bank of Northern Indiana.
The event ran from 4 to 8 p.m. Admission was at least one non-perishable food item or monetary donation. In the Grill, children were able to enjoy activities such as face painting, Quidditch, a maze and crafts.
Naomi and Dan Guthrie brought their four year old daughter Tegan.
“We showed up here because of the rain,” Naomi said. “We heard about it on WNDU and decided to come out.”
For the more daring, a haunted house loomed in the depths of Northside. Families were brought to the front of the auditorium and led down the stairs to the house entrance. Student volunteers led them through a dark tunnel with red lights where they were met by crazed lunatics, star-crossed lovers rising from the grave and even body bags..
Christian Munoz and his brothers, ranging from ages eight to twelve, were some of the first children to go through.
“I think it was kind of scary” said Munoz, “There were a lot of pop-ups and I got really scared in the dark parts. I got so scared that I crawled on the floor”.
Plans for the event began one month ago when Russell Williams, head of H.O.P., asked Dean of the School of the Arts Marvin V. Curtis about hosting the haunted attraction.
“One month ago we sent a call out to students in the school of the arts,” Curtis said. “It turns out we had quite a few students interested. Russell spoke with the SGA and Tim Hanson to open the scene shop. Students got together Sunday and decorated the shop for four hours. They got decorations from the scene shop as well as Fun FX. I am very proud of the students, not all of them are from the school of arts but from all over campus.”
H.O.P. is becoming a campus resource for those looking to volunteer around the community. Led by Russell Williams, the group is working to connect students to different volunteer opportunities that they may not have known about before.
“We provide volunteering for students in collaboration with organizations and non-profits in the community. We work with Student Life and other groups on campus” Williams said. “We are working on getting our own webpage right now but students can get involved by contacting me through email.”
Williams said he thought the event was a success with great turnout.
“I think it showed IU students that we can hold events and do great things. We had quite a bit of food donated and more than 30 groups go through the house,” Williams said.
It was estimated by Williams that approximately 300 people participated in the event.
Russell Williams can be contacted at willruss@umail.iu.edu. Find the IUSB Office of Student Life Facebook Page to stay updated on coming events.
