Dia del Este to be biggest event held on campus

After months of planning, one of the biggest events to be held on campus, Dia del Este, will take place on March 13 and 14.

Dia del Este, which is supposed to mean “day of Eastern,” is “almost like a progressive dinner, but like a party all over campus,” Paul Daigle, student activities coordinator said. Activities and competitions will occur continuously over 24 hours, with the opportunity to win an assortment of prizes.

The idea originated last year with SGA, and SAB offered to organize much of the event. SGA is collaborating by allotting money to the overall cost, helping with ticket sales and managing the setup for the after-party activities.

Each student must purchase a $1 ticket before the weekend to participate in Dia del Este. With this ticket, each student will receive stamps upon arriving at the different activities. Ten stamps earn one chance to be entered into the final drawings for an X-Box 360 or an i-Pod Touch. Other drawings can be entered with fewer stamps.

Activities on the evening of March 13 will begin at 5 p.m., including special parties and contests in Eagle, Gallup, Kea-Guffin and Hainer residence halls. The activities particular to each residence hall have been decided by the RAs and hall councils of each building.

Later, a karaoke party will be held in the Dining Commons, followed by an all-night ’80s movie marathon McInnis auditorium.

“Things overlap, but that’s intentional,” Daigle said. “We have to stagger them.”

Activities in Doane, Sparrowk and Gough Halls will begin on March 14. There will also be a mega-size Dutch Blitz tournament in the gym.

One of the most prominent events of the weekend, a showing of the documentary, Lord, Save us from your Followers, will take place in the main gym at 7 p.m. on Saturday. This event will be worth five stamps on each student’s ticket, and there will be an opportunity to hear from the writer and director, Dan Merchant, after the show.

Daigle said that he hopes to “have a lot of fun and create a new level of excitement about student activities and student life.

“I’m hoping it becomes an annual event,” he said. The goal is “to achieve the highest participation rate of any event on campus.”