Friday the thirteenth event spooks campus
When students walked through the entrance of the dimly lit UIndy Hall, they were greeted by mist from a fog machine, beating music and the aromas of popcorn and cotton candy. These were the sights and sounds of Carnevil, the spooky, themed event hosted by Warren Hall. Carnevil took place on Sept. 13 from 8-11 p.m. The event featured games, food and prizes students could win.
Students stood in line anxiously at the palm reading booth to hear what the lines on their hands would say about their futures. The palm reader was senior communication major Will Schnabel, who studied palm reading for two days to prepare for the event. By looking at their palms, Schnabel was able to tell students about their love lives, if they would have struggles in the future, their financial stabilities and whether or not they were on the right path.
A Warren Hall RA manages the cup game during the first ever Carnevil, a spooky, themed event with dim lighting and costumes, on Sept. 13 in UIndy Hall. Photo by Mia Lin
Other students tested their luck at duck fishing to win raffle tickets or walked the cake walk to win a cupcake. Other games included a ping pong toss and a ring toss with two-liters of soda. Winners got to take the two-liter that their ring landed on. Some games gave out tickets that could be cashed in for various prizes such as beanie babies, candy or water bottles. Others gave away raffle tickets for bigger prizes.If students were having an unlucky time with the games, they could get their faces painted, eat the food, dance with their friends or take a picture at the face cutout board that had clowns on it.
Everything at Carnevil was organized by the Warren Hall resident assistants. According to Warren Hall Resident Director Derrick Hicks, his staff had three weeks to put the event together, and all 11 of the RAs put a lot of time and dedication into making the event a success, even if that meant staying up all night.
“They really have been running it,” Hicks said. “They’ve been finding the sources to get money; they’ve been shopping around. They really haven’t gotten much sleep. They’ve been putting a lot of work into this.”
The RAs were in charge of raising funds for the event, buying costumes and prizes, making the decorations, building the face cutout board and then running the games during the event. As the night went on, raffle numbers were called out and a dance contest was held. Winners received gift baskets of candy and UIndy gear.
Besides providing a free and fun event for the weekend, Hicks said the goal was to let people relax and get to know each other while in costume and having fun playing games.
“It’s a time for you to get away from the wall of being you and let your guard down and have fun,” he said.
Hicks said he was very happy with the turnout, and depending on the student response, Warren Hall RAs may do it next year.
Freshman art therapy major Laura Mikeworth left Carnevil smiling and said she had a lot of fun during the night.
“This is my first campus event,” she said. “And it’s cool just to see everyone come together and have a good time dancing and celebrating something as cool and as simple as Friday the 13th.”
