The University of Maine History Club has made its grand return to campus this year after the club went dormant. Last Friday, the club hosted a new event, a Halloween hide-out, not only to fundraise for a planned trip but also to spread the word that the club is back. More than that, the club aims to provide an outlet for those interested in history, and its members are advertising more to spread the word. When talking to members, it became clear that while history can often be categorized as boring, the club aims to find creative outlets to share its passion with students around UMaine.
The club’s president, Jeremy Collamore, a fourth-year student studying history and political science, rechartered the club last year. Collamore discussed the fact that “a lot of the members are not history majors” and said “it is a non-academic place for those interested in history that the history department doesn’t serve.”
Beyond its weekly meetings, the club also organizes trips off campus. Last year, Collomore and other club members traveled to Portland for events celebrating America’s 250th anniversary and took a four-day trip to Boston. This year, the club is increasing its fundraising efforts to support a six-day trip to Washington, D.C., over spring break.
As for the Halloween hideout, the idea came from an unexpected place: Yik Yak. While the social media platform is well known for spreading rumors and posting about random happenings on campus, Collamore said that “there was a group that was talking about it last year” and “another officer said we should do it.” The event started at the steps of Fogler on Friday evening, and after signing a waiver and paying the $5 entry fee, participants were free to start the game.
Modeled after the game “manhunt,” participants were given a map of the boundaries and told that “if you find a regular club member you get a prize.” If you were to find Collamore, you would “get a prize and a trophy.” The event lasted about an hour, and while it isn’t necessarily history-themed, Collamore was “dressed as a founding father.”
Even though the event has run before, Collamore said that “it was a very different iteration” and that they are overall “very different from what the club was before it went defunct.” To get the event to run, Collamore had to “start with the Center for Student Involvement [to] submit their activity form” and then “had to reach out to UMPD to let them know it was happening,” as well as reaching out “to Sean [O’Mara] for help with the waivers.” With all the work and meetings that have gone into it, and as it is their first big event back, Collamore was “excited to see all of their effort pay off.”
Not only was he excited for this event, but he was “excited to meet the students that showed up, and give the opportunity to meet more people interested in history.” As the details of the event unfolded, it was clear that it was a sort of passion project for the club. It was not only for the fundraising effort to allow for their spring break trip but also to spread the word about their club and get it advertised to more people in a fun and spirited way.
Although people may be surprised by the club’s choice of fundraiser, the event shows that history doesn’t always have to be serious, and UMaine’s History Club provides an outlet for students to connect with others, have fun and explore their interests beyond the classroom.
