Unless you’ve been living under a rock, every Rutgers student knows that Rutgers is turning 250 on November 10th of 2016! Rutgers University has an enormous year-long celebration planned for this monumental year. Today, on Rutgers’ 249th birthday, I attended the Rutgers 250 Kickoff Celebration, the first in a long line of events as we approach this big birthday next year. The event went on, with no less enthusiasm, despite the rainy weather. There were multiple stations set up all around Old Queen’s Campus, the oldest part of the Rutgers University – New Brunswick campus.
Upon arrival, students were asked to write a message to the founders of Rutgers, what would you say to them? The board was overflowing with thank-yous, declarations of gratitude, and Rutgers spirit. What was really amazing about this event was not the amount of people who showed up to celebrate, but the diversity of the crowd. Anyone who took a quick look around could see an abundance of not only current Rutgers students, but also loads of proud alumni and current Rutgers employees too! Any visitor could hear the diversity of the crowd too. Multiple languages were flooding the air, a clear reflection of the variety of cultures that can be found in Rutgers student populations.
People of all ages were swarming around the many tents set up in the grass. They were lining up to win prizes, listening to the reenactment of Rutgers founding, and signing the large charter scroll. The biggest crowd of all was surrounding the unwrapping of Rutgers’ first birthday present of the year, which is shown in a picture below. The second biggest crowd was obviously around the food table, where they served warm chili, french fries, and delectable hot chocolate for all to enjoy. The Rutgers community came together and enjoyed a wonderful afternoon of celebrating Rutgers and all its greatness, and I’m sure I’m not just speaking for myself to say that I am so excited to attend the rest of the Rutgers 250 events after today.
Check out http://250.rutgers.edu to stay up to date on all things Rutgers 250!