Big Event on Longwood Campus a Big Hit

By Jordan Maynard
Rotunda ReporterOn Saturday, March 28, Longwood University hosted a program called the Big Event to give back to the Farmville community. This program is hosted on over 70 other college campuses, including Virginia Tech, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Oklahoma. The Longwood Big Event is being hailed as a success by many, including Longwood President Patricia Cormier.

Participants completed numerous jobs including working at Madeline's House, cleaning up Grove Street Park, and working in two residential homes. Big Event director Joshua Rolfe estimated that 80 to 90 people participated in this first annual event. Of those participants, he mentioned that they were approximately half Greek and half non-Greek. Organizations represented at the Big Event include Sigma Sigma Sigma, the Longwood Ambassadors and the Sociology Club.

Lauren Gabor, sophomore and Tri-Sigma sister, said her sorority had a high number of participants, estimated to be around 28 people, which was the largest participation by a single group. Gabor heard about the Big Event through the Longwood Ambassadors and her sorority got together to join. "I worked at Madeline's House and cleaned out this really big shed. We pulled everything out, went through it, sorted it, then labeled it, and packed it away nice and neat," she said, adding that others at that site planted flowers and cleaned up the exterior. "It's nice and aesthetically pleasing now."

Rolfe said that while in the past, organizations have done community service and outreach programs on their own, the Big Event is done by Longwood as a whole, not a single organization. "Longwood University students are making a positive mark in our community."

Tara Coney, operations chair and fundraising for the Big Event, said the Big Event is a "big community outreach program. [Farmville houses] us nine months of the year and we come in and do as we please in their town, so it's a way to say 'thank you.'" She said this year's event was a lot of fun, and that planning for next year's event is already in the works, with Trey Brindle as the director of next year's event. Coney said that this year's event planning started a year ago, kicking into high gear after winter break. Fundraising started in the fall with an event at Sheetz.

During a speech given at the closing of the Big Event, Cormier said, "I've heard from people who've benefited already . the people at Madeline's House are eternally grateful of what you did there, and I'm sure we're going to be hearing from others." She went on to say that Longwood students are citizen leaders and care about people less fortunate then themselves.

The Big Event started at Texas A&M University in 1982 as a way to say thank you to the community. According to the Big Event's Web site, "The BIG Event promotes campus and community unity as students come together for one day to express their gratitude for the support from the surrounding community." The Texas A&M Big Event works over a thousand jobs in one day including window washing, yard work, interior/exterior painting and much more.

During Rolfe's speech, he said that some committee members were concerned about the weather this year. His response was that "for the Big Event to become a tradition at Longwood, it clearly had to rain. It seems like every year, it likes to rain during Spring Weekend and Oktoberfest, so if we can get the Big Event to carry on as those two weekends have, let it rain."

As for next year's participation, Callie Darling, sophomore and Tri-Sigma sister, said "You don't have to be Greek or an Ambassador. It's awesome to do it as a group, but it's also to do it by yourself. It's a Longwood thing."

Rolfe said next year the Big Event is going to be bigger and better. "Today we forged new friendships and made Longwood and the Farmville community one step closer to being a whole. The next time a Longwood Lancer goes to a local store, the chances of a student running into a neighbor have increased. This event has created opportunities to merge our worlds and give thanks to those that surround us through our educational adventures.