By Tristian Rosario – President of  Lambda Alpha Upsilon Fraternity, Inc.

On October 31, 2010, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m., Lambda Alpha Upsilon Fraternity, Inc. held a Halloween event on the campus of the University of New Haven. The brotherhood had children from the Boys and Girls club of New Haven come to the campus and trick or treat.

In today’s world, it is hard for children to enjoy Halloween and be able to go trick or treating in the midst of any violence that may be occurring in the surrounding communities and neighborhoods. Lambda Alpha Upsilon Fraternity, Inc. wanted to provide the children from the New Haven area a safe and fun Halloween and thought that this event would be one way to accomplish that goal.

As soon as the children arrived on the campus, they were escorted either by a student of University of New Haven or by a member of an organization/club to the area where they could get their bags for the candy. A counselor of the University or from the Boys and Girls Club then took their group of children between Bixler and Botwinik to the tables where candy was given.

During their journey for candy, they took pictures with students that were dressed up as Spiderman, a Fairy, a Witch, and Wolverine. Once 2 p.m. came along, we surprised the children with our pumpkin workshop in the Recreation Center, where each child received a pumpkin to paint. When all the children were done painting their pumpkins, the clubs and organizations came together and played several games with the children, including Simon Says, Duck Duck Goose, Red light Green light, Freeze Tag, Basketball, and Kickball. At 3 p.m., we had Sodexo catering in the Alumni Lounge to provide the children with snacks and drinks. The children could then relax and have something to snack on. Lastly, everyone watched Halloweentown in the Alumni Lounge.

The clubs and organizations that were involved in this event were the following. The sororities included Sigma Iota Alpha, Lambda Psi Delta, Omega Phi Beta, Delta Epsilon Beta, Delta Phi Epsilon, Chi Kappa Rho, and Phi Sigma Sigma. The fraternities included Delta Chi, Sigma Chi, and Sigma Alpha Epsilon. The clubs on campus that helped out included the Elite Step Team, NAACP, and LASA. Lastly, there were also individual students that wanted to participate in the event: Symone Henderson, Indira Infant, Mike Podsiedlak, Stephanie Rivera, Enrique Cruz, and Cara Dennis.

“The pleasure was all ours! The young people told us about the fun they had on campus. It is events like this which reinforce our young people’s belief that college is in their future,” said Seth L. Poole, the Program Director of the Boys and Girls Club of New Haven.

“I’m glad this event happened, and even though getting this event going was a rollercoaster, the smiles on the children faces made it all worth it,” said Tristian Rosario, Kappa Chapter President of Lambda Alpha Upsilon Fraternity, Inc.

“I think I speak for all organizations and individuals when I say that this event, hosted by Lambda Alpha Upsilon Fraternity, Inc., was outstanding. Being able to say that we made a difference in these children’s lives just by taking out a few hours during the day to help will stay with us forever. This is definitely an event that I would annually participate in,” said Caity Fennell, Alpha Chapter President of Lambda Psi Delta Sorority, Incorporated.

A special thanks goes out to Student Activities and the Office of Residential Life for providing Lambda Alpha Upsilon Fraternity, Inc. with the facilities and funds for this wonderful and successful event.