Drawing in students on a dreary fall day with food, games, a petting zoo and more was the Student Union Board of Governors’ Harvest Fest, held on Saturday afternoon at the University of Connecticut.
The event was the first of its kind, created after the cancelation of this year’s Homecoming Carnival, prompted by a September Nor’easter, SUBOG Special Events Chair Korah Erase said.
Erase called Harvest Fest a “revamp” of the carnival and said, “I wanted the students to be able to come together, and just do something fun with their friends.”
Upon checking in at the event, students were automatically entered into a raffle for a chance to win a fall-themed prize basket, a pickleball basket or a hot chocolate basket, Erase said. After participating in two or more games, which included inflatables, like Zap-A-Mole and a mock corn maze, students could redeem additional prizes, such as animal plushies, SUBOG’s Vice President of Membership Ruby Leonard said.
The chicken stuffed animal was of interest to Johanna Rivera, a fifth-semester allied health sciences major. She said that she was excited to see the real chickens in the petting zoo from Good Pickin’ Farm.
“I will definitely be doing everything and anything that this place has to offer,” Rivera said.
Young chickens, Kunekune piglets, Nigerian Dwarf goats and rabbits were featured in the petting zoo, Co-Owner of Good Pickin’ Farm Jen Mitton said. Three baby rabbits that were in the pen are currently up for adoption, Mitton added.
Good Pickin’ Farm is an educational farm located in Westford, Massachusetts, with an on-the-go program. The farm has partnered with UConn in the past, dating back to a goat yoga event three years ago, Mitton said. Erase mentioned that the petting zoo was originally planned for the cancelled Homecoming Carnival.
Mitton said that all her animals are very friendly.
“Our animals are handled on a daily basis, by a lot of different people, so this is their happy place,” she said. “They love to be handled and snuggled and everything.”
Five food trucks were parked along the border of the lawn, offering coffee, snow cones, apple fritters and other fall treats to students for free.
Travelin’ Tom’s Coffee Truck is no stranger to UConn, appearing on campus five times in the last two months, Erase said. The truck served hot and iced coffee and lattes, frozen drinks and refresher-style beverages, which were all customizable with an extensive assortment of flavors.
Anvita Lammata, a fifth-semester analytics and information management major, said she is not an avid coffee-drinker, but liked her salted caramel iced latte.
“It’s not too bitter to me,” she said.
She also said that she played a few games at the event and that she was having fun.
Personalized, air-brushed tote bags were the main attraction for some at Harvest Fest, with a large line of students waiting to have their names or chosen designs sprayed onto a bag.
One of those students was Cashlyn Cunneen, a fifth-semester political science major, who said that she was planning to get her name and her favorite colors on her tote. She said that she had only seen airbrushed T-shirts at events before.
“It looks cool,” Cunneen said.
SUBOG Major Weekends Chair Yanique Guichette said the goal of the event was to bring students together in place of the carnival before winter begins.
“We just said, ‘Let’s do this again,’” Guichette said.