Meet Lukash (Luke) Zalubniak, a third year sociology student who has a huge presence on campus. Who is he? Well, he’s best known as the guy who walks around campus singing and dancing. Luke brings a refreshingly pleasant vibe to our campus, that emits self-expression, acceptance, and just happiness, and that is what he intended.
Previously a CL, Luke has always been one to be himself, and not be afraid of self expression. He enjoys reading; preferably something challenging that he may not understand the first time through. He also enjoys bike riding, meditating, actively engaging in philosophical discussion, and of course, singing and dancing.
He has always been one to help, and being the “singing and dancing guy” he has found an outlet to incite happiness without being intrusive or offensive. “I offer a talking point” and a very interesting one at that. Luke found himself singing and dancing all the time in high school, and it has now carried on because it’s a great stress reliever for himself. Judging by the response he gets, he renders happiness for himself and everyone around him.
“For me, I reinforce community on campus, and opening up a safe space for everyone to be who they want. We all have a right to be happy. Inevitably, we are all just people trying to make our way though this space. We are all humans.” Of course, with this comes expectation. An expectation to be consistently upbeat. “I have my down days too, you either have to push through or let yourself be down.” No matter these days, he still loves doing what he does.
Luke advocates for doing what you love. “It’s going to sound preachy, but if you aren’t doing what you love to do, why are you doing it? If someone told you to do something you don’t want to do- why are you doing it? Right now, do what can make you happy.”
“Figure out something today, that you really want to do today. Whether it’s to read a book, even just a few pages, or sit down and just have a really good cup of coffee. Make time for it.” Simple things like that are what you need to take care of yourself.
When asked whether he expects a legacy to follow, he responds, “I’d much rather have a memory of what I left behind, other than me. We start remembering the person and not what they did [..] I’d rather leave something people can follow, other than a memory of a man”. Insightful and humble, Luke enjoys emitting his happy, go-lucky spirit on campus and dreams to inspire, and uplift anyone’s spirit. Whether they have been having a bad day, or they’ve been having a great day- he just makes them feel good.
Luke loves a good conversation! Whether you see him holding open a door, or just strutting his way through campus, give him a nod, or wave, or just a smile. He loves doing what he does, and feels everyone should feel that way about something.
“No one is going to enjoy today for you”