November 14, 2024
With the holiday season fast approaching, Winthrop students are preparing for their annual traditions at home and around campus.
Spending time with family and friends is common among Winthrop students. Whether it’s Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah or other holidays around this time of year, students take part in many activities revolving around bonding with their loved ones.
“We used to go up to a cabin for a weekend, cook Thanksgiving dinner and just spend time together,” sophomore Kya Spurgeon said.
“I’m half Vietnamese, so we celebrate with the Black side of my family in Georgia and then we go to my grandmother’s house in Charlotte,” fifth year senior Astro Phoenix said. “A tradition has always been celebrating two Christmases – it’s a part of being multiracial and it’s a part of the experience.”
“It was definitely more real as kids, but we would all sleep on the coach just so we could catch Santa,” freshman Abby Ezzell said. “We still do it.”
“It’s really nice for everyone around the holidays to come down,” senior Matt Brunet said.
“I’m a Christian, so we believe in giving thanks to God and being thankful for our family and friends,”said junior Jaron Levi. “For Christmas, we celebrate the birth of Christ. It’s just a time for us to get together – we laugh, we sing, we watch tv, we eat good food, and we can just sit and talk for hours.”
“We go around and say what we’re thankful for and everybody gets the chance to speak,” sophomore Shane King said. “It used to be annoying to me when I was younger, but it’s important to hear.”
Food is a central part of the holiday season for many – from staples of the holiday season to unique dishes.
“We have a big gumbo cook-out at my grandparents’ house with their family and the extended family,” junior Bryson Vaughan said. “It’s always good to see everybody.”
“My mom always used to make fruit cake – either cookies or cake,” University Communications and Marketing news and media services manager Judy Longshaw said. “I always had to tell her I don’t like it. And she would give me cookies to take back to college. I still don’t like them.”
“At Christmas, my grandma would usually bring somewhere around 300 to 400 sugar cookies that my sister and I – and all the youngest of the family – would get together and make really weird things,” senior Archie Walker said.
“We have traditional Thanksgiving food, but there have been talks that this year, since we have so many people coming from Jersey, that we will just do Italian style food,” freshman Marshall Forero said. “Even though we are not Italian.”
Winthrop and Rock Hill play host to annual traditions for students – including the Holiday Delights Concert and the ChristmasVille celebration.
The annual Holiday Delights Concert will feature performances from the Winthrop Choirs. The event is Monday, Dec. 2 in Richardson Ballroom.
This year, the annual tree lighting ceremony held on Friday, Dec. 6 at 6 p.m. as a part of Rock Hill’s ChristmasVille celebration, will be different. Instead of lighting a tree, the flagpole in front of Tillman Hall will be lit up. The ceremony will feature performances by the Rock Hill Rockettes, Winthrop Chorale and Collegiate Choir.
ChristmasVille events are held from Dec. 5-8 in various locations across Rock Hill. The celebration will feature 70 events around town – including craft markets, food vendors and the Jingle Bells Parade.
For more information about holiday events at Winthrop, visit https://winthropevents.coursedog.com/.
