Whether you celebrate Valentine’s or Galentines, Bluffton University campus was ready to celebrate. The concept of Feb. 14 always seems to
earn mixed reactions. This year, students tried to bring back the love for campus Valentine’s Day.
Only days before Valentine’s, an anonymous messenger decided to leave heart shaped notes upon the dorm room doors of residence halls. Messages like “You are not your makeup, not your clothes, an anonymous face that no one knows!” and “A one-of-a-kind work of art, you’re a masterpiece!” were left as a nice Valentine’s treat for residents to wake up to.
The secret messenger has yet to come forward, leaving the heart-shaped notes anonymous.
Several residence halls also put together small gatherings for the students. In Ramseyer Hall, resident advisers Maddie Huffman, a senior social work and psychology major, and Alejandra Valenzuela, a sophomore social work and psychology major, put together a contest for the third-floor residents. Each person was given the option to decorate a small box and bring it to the Valentine’s party. The boxes were made to be like small mailboxes so others could drop in a valentine or a piece of candy. The decorated “mailboxes” were voted upon and the winner(s) received a twenty-dollar gift card to Polished— a local salon on North Main Street.
“We just wanted to bring back the old elementary tradition of Valentine’s.” said Huffman, “Decorating a shoe box and giving Valentine’s notes and candy to each other.”
Bringing back the elementary school tradition seemed to keep the holiday lighthearted and friendly. Celebrating as a dorm hall helped residents push forward the mantra of Galentines rather than the classic Valentine’s.
Roommates Sarah Woods, a sophomore business administration and sociology major, and Genesis Lyons, a senior social work major, ended up winning the decoration contest with their llama Valentine’s box.
Hirschy Annex took part in the Valentine’s festivities as well. RA Noelle Nuttle gifted her residents with goodie bags to celebrate the holiday. Hershey kisses candy, heart shaped straws and red heart bubbles were all included within each resident’s bags.
