Spring. A few things can be expected
to remain constant this time of year at
Hopkins: final exams hanging over your
head, lazy days on the beach, ditching
that once-a-week class and the annual
Spring Fair that rocks the Homewood
campus as the sweetest event since last
year's Spring Fair.
The three-day event starts Friday
at noon and continues through Sunday
evening; providing food, education
and entertainment for students
as well as community members.
Spring Fair is one of Hopkins' biggest
events and draws community
members from the Charles Village and
Hampden areas as well as the rest of
Baltimore City. Students attend because
it's the most excitement they've had all
year. "It's beer, food and carnival games.
What more could you ask for?" proclaimed
sophomore Alex Sinofsky.
This year the booths will be centered
around the newly bricked walkway
in front of Levering Hall and on
the upper and lower quads.
Daytime entertainment consists of
the fair's carnival rides and vending
booths. These rented lots offer anything
from non-profit organizations
such as Baltimore Reads to the Downtown
Sailing Center, arts and crafts
vendors ranging from jewelry to
handmade tapestry to bamboo ornaments
and of course food vendors
providing funnel cake and kettle corn
as well as non-carnival foods.
These booths are not just limited
to local businesses and organizations.
Student groups are also allowed to
rent booths for almost any purpose,
whether it's fundraising through
raffles, contests and food sales, or simply
promoting awareness of an issue
through handing out pamphlets and
selling t-shirts. One of the changes to
the food booths this year is that no
two booths can sell the same type of
food. This drives out many groups
who just want to use the fair as an
opportunity to make extra money.
The benefit from this is that the groups
who do attend will be forced to provide
a greater variety of foods for students
to choose from.
Some student groups decide to put
their booths to philanthropic uses,
rather than to make a few dollars. The
sisters of Alpha Phi are conducting a
raffle for their charity, Alpha Phi's
International Foundation for Cardiac
Care. This non-profit booth "will donate
all of its proceeds to research in
heart care for women," said junior
Anjali Malik, VP of Marketing for
Alpha Phi.
This year the Spring Fair is sponsoring
a Photo Contest. Submissions
of mixed, color and black and white
photos will be collected and prejudged
before being displayed on the
quad side of the MSE Library.
Musical entertainment will be provided
on the steps of Shriver and
Gilman Hall, with student bands like
Escape Plan, The Internet and Andy
Joiner Jazz Quartet. A capella and
student improv groups will also be
performing both Saturday and Sunday
afternoons.
This year's Springfair also brings
Blackalicious and The Pharcyde to
Hopkins. Doors open for these two
much anticipated old school hip-hop
groups at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.
This year also marks the return of
the 5K race, after an absence of a few
years. The race, sponsored by the Dyslexia
Tutoring Program, will be held on
Saturday at 8:30 a.m. and will raise
money for dyslexia awareness. Those
interested in participating can register
online at www.charmcityrun.com.
Another event that happens to be
a favorite amongst the students at the
annual Spring Fair is the Beer Garden.
Sponsored by 98 ROCK, student
groups purchase kegs of the finest
varieties and serve them to thirsty
Spring Fairers each afternoon at the
President's Garden. "The beer garden
is nice because it gives everyone a
change to relax in the afternoon, after
a hard day of classes," said sophomore
Dmytri Zontov.
But whatever you chose to do during
these three lazy days of food and
fun, make sure to remember that
weekends like this are what college is
all about. Take advantage, for it happens
but once a year.
