The University of Maine community celebrated Halloween by devoting the whole weekend as “Halloweekend,” beginning on Thursday.
Nationwide, the phrase “Halloweekend” carries with it a stigma of simply being a weekend to party. However, many different departments of the UMaine administration and faculty have been working in collaboration to ensure there are “dry” options for things to do on campus, e.g. events that provide students with things to do to celebrate Halloween other than going out and drinking.
A variety of events took place all weekend around the UMaine campus with themes such as “Thursday Thriller,” “Freaky Friday” and “Spooky Saturday.” The events, which took place at various venues around campus, brought together the UMaine Division of Student Life staff and students of various backgrounds at engaging events such as the Haunted Ghost Tours held at the Memorial Union.
There were activities at the Memorial Union and the New Balance Recreation Center from 7- 10 p.m. throughout the weekend.
To kick off the weekend, on Thursday, Oct. 31., the Maine Bound Adventure Center hosted the “Costume Climb” where students were invited to dress up, climb the practice climbing walls and participate later in the day in a costume party.
The UMaine Dining staff members took part in hosting Halloween-themed festivities by providing a pumpkin painting table at some of the dining halls for students to decorate.
To celebrate Halloween evening, UMaine hosted the “Thrifty Runway” student fashion show where the winner was awarded a Hydroflask.
“I enjoy having the option to celebrate Halloween all weekend long,” third-year environmental science student Sara Schaefer told the Maine Campus. “It is really awesome that UMaine has so many options of things to do for students all these nights. It truly creates a fun and safe place to meet new people and get dressed up!”
“I really appreciate this chance to dress up and partake in activities on campus. It really helps build a sense of community in a celebratory way. Plus there’s free food, hard to pass up,” third-year journalism student Patrick Silvia said.
The holiday also offered the opportunity for many of the student organizations to host themed tables at the memorial union. Many sold Halloween candy to raise money for their organizations, and members of the UMaine Crew, UMaine International Student Association and various members of Greek life at UMaine made appearances all week long encouraging students to partake in the Halloween spirit.
Halloween also offered the opportunity for UMaine faculty and members of the local community to bring their kids to the Memorial Union for some trick-or-treating. Many of the student offices, such as the Rainbow Resource Center and the Commuter and Non-Traditional Student Center, offered trick-or-treating opportunities to members of the community.
On Friday, Nov 1. at 9:00 p.m., the first floor of the Memorial Union in front of the bookstore was converted into a dance floor to make room for the “Dance of the Dead.” Students gathered to dance and dress up in costume. The bookstore offered “Dance of the Dead” t-shirts for those in attendance.
Other events off-campus during Halloweekend included haunted houses hosted by members of the local community, hay-rides and costume party opportunities.
