Festivities begin
Students celebrate annual tree lighting ceremony
Liberty University’s Student Activities hosted the fifth annual Christmas in Lights ceremony on the steps of DeMoss Hall Tuesday evening, Nov. 18, drawing a large crowd of students excited for the Christmas season to begin.
CELEBRATION — Students braved the cold weather to participate in the fifth annual campus Christams tree lighting event. Photo credit: Courtney Russo
Delayed a day due to inclement weather, the holiday festivities were moved, but temperatures still reached a low of 21 degrees, according to the Weather Channel. The cold did not stop students from showing up to participate in the festivities. According to Liberty News and Events, nearly 1,000 students still decided to brave the cold in order to catch a glimpse of the Christmas lighting extravaganza.
Christmas carols were sung as the crowd grew in anticipation of the lighting of the trees all along University Boulevard and the main tree in front of DeMoss Hall.
President Jerry Falwell and his wife Becki joined in on the festivities, announcing that there would be Christmas music continuously playing throughout main campus.
After the ceremony, students stuck around to enjoy hot chocolate and take selfies with friends in front of the tree.
“We hide a pickle ornament on the tree and whoever finds it first gets a present,” sophomore Jenna Aylor said. “It’s usually a nutcracker.”
With the end-of-the-semester anxiety starting to pile up for many students, the event came as a much-needed change of pace.
“It makes me want to do my school work more so that I can go home for Christmas, honestly,” sophomore Meredith Boyce said.
With the boost of joy that comes from the simple lighting of trees, the task of finishing out the semester seems a little less
daunting.
“I just feel like it’s Who-ville,” Boyce said. “I feel like I’m a Who and I don’t know where the Grinch is, but I’m ready to sing.”
CARTER is a sports reporter.