The Social Activities Council (SAC) debuted a first-of-its-kind Fall Festival on Friday, Sept. 12 on the Fiske Quad, featuring a variety of inflatable games and attractions, a mechanical bull, fair food staples and live music. An inflatable obstacle course was also installed outside the Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery.
Following a long-term planning process that began in July, SAC moved to host an event intended to bring the autumn fair season to Keene State College.
According to senior and SAC President Kerrin Shea, the idea to host the Fall Festival came from missing the annual autumn fairs New England is known for.
“It was really important to us to utilize the budget to provide for as many students as possible, and when I pitched this idea, one of the main things I was thinking about is how much I missed the fair. Everyone had their fair, and I really missed it here,” said Shea.
“We tried to mimic what would be at a fair or a carnival that you would typically find and make it fun and homey and free and accessible for all students. We really hope to bring this one back because it’s going so well and everyone seems to be having a great time,” added Shea.
One key element of replicating a fair experience was securing live music. Following last semester’s controversial cuts to student organizational budgets, SAC was forced to suspend its annual Spring Concert, a former staple of the SAC events calendar. Despite having to cancel the concert, SAC leadership arranged for Ian Flanigan, a former finalist on NBC’s “The Voice” who’s worked alongside country music powerhouse Blake Shelton to perform at the festival. Flanigan performed from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m., and included some original songs that debuted at Keene State College.
“I’m a songwriter first and foremost, and every show you do is an opportunity to introduce new songs that nobody has heard. You’re always trying to connect with somebody, and maybe there is a story that someone really resonates with, and that’s the whole goal,” said Flanigan.
“I played about six original new songs today, including some that debuted here at your school for the first time. I wrote my song “Can’t Get Home” the other day, which was inspired because I just became a father to two twin baby girls, and thinking about how things start with going to school, and then overtime things change and home is not the same as it was five or ten years ago, so the evolution of life and redefining the word,” added Flanigan.
Senior Amarrah Gates said she enjoyed the music and appreciated the chance to hear original songs on campus.
“It’s really exciting and a great opportunity for us to get to hear new music and have artists like this perform here,” said Gates. “I really liked what I heard. He has a great voice and it was really nice to have live music.”
Prior to Flanigan’s performance, senior Cole Blanco said he enjoyed the inflatable games and attractions.
“I did a little of the football game they have set up. I was a [quarterback] back in my day, so it felt good to bring that arm back into the game. I played a little basketball too, and was hitting some three pointers which felt really good too. I love sports, and it was fun to try out some of these little games they have up,” said Blanco.
“I’m excited to see everyone outside and having some fun. It’s a beautiful day, get up off the couch and come have some fun,” added Blanco.
Junior and SAC Major Events Coordinator Michael Peachey, who organized the festival, praised the work the SAC team put into making it a reality.
“Early July is when we started the event planning, going onto the website to decide what we wanted for inflatables, putting in transaction forms, talking with the company and all sorts of other stuff. It’s a good amount of hard work, especially coming back from break and coming back a week early to plan for the event,” said Peachey.
“Even if you have two months to plan for everything, the week before is always a lot of stuff,” added Peachey.
Peachey said seeing the campus community enjoying the festival made the work rewarding.
“Honestly the good feedback has been the best part. Even though things can be stressful, seeing how happy everyone is makes all the work we put in, all the hours worthwhile,” said Peachey.
“Seeing it all come to fruition and seeing everyone enjoying it makes all the hard work behind the scenes worth it,” added Peachey.
Senior and SAC Vice President Katharine Orr said she hopes the campus community continues to come out and enjoy the events the SAC team organizes.
“All of the students here pay the student activity fee, and we really want to be able to cater to the majority of the campus. That’s our mission, to put on programming that’s accessible to everyone who goes here,” said Orr.
“It makes us really happy when we get good feedback and we get to see people enjoying themselves on a beautiful day,” added Orr.
Ryan Pacheco can be contacted at
rpacheco@kscequinox.com
