Not every resident of West Hall was born on Sept. 19, but it certainly seemed like it on Tuesday.
A birthday party was held for everyone living in West in honor of the dorm’s 30th anniversary.
West resident director Cory Kundert, explained his reasoning behind “Westanza,” as the celebration came to be called.
“We decided to have a 24-hour party instead of celebrating birthdays every month,” Kundert said.
The event caused confusion around campus as residents of West were constantly wishing each other “Happy birthday.” Some even decided to change their birthdays on Facebook.
“It took me a minute, but I figured out it wasn’t everybody’s birthday,” said sophomore Mackenzie Larin.
The first birthday event occurred at midnight when West residents went outside to yell “happy birthday!” However, most students paid little attention.
“I have stopped being surprised by the things I see on campus,” said junior Hannah Biernacki.
“I just thought they were pulling a prank on someone by yelling really loud to wake them up,” Larin said.
Throughout the day, a 36-inch candle was passed between residents of West.
“They had to take it everywhere with them: To class, to chapel and even to the restroom,” Kundert said.
Every time a West resident saw someone else from West he yelled “Happy birthday” and passed the candle on. However, there were rules when it came to passing the candle in chapel.
“We could not go around passing it through chapel every time we saw another guy from West,” said sophomore Sheric Hull.
Other activities celebrating Westanza included games, a meal in the cafe, a candy-filled piñata and a petting zoo for the whole campus to enjoy, complete with llamas, goats and a calf.
“The petting zoo was a surprise that only the RD knew about,” said sophomore Aaron Liker.
To top off the celebration, Kundert baked cakes for the first time in his life. West residents had their choice of bacon-chocolate cake or Fruit Roll-Up cake.
“I thought the bacon cake was awesome,” said junior Zachary Hankel.
Celebrating everyone’s birthday on the same day worked out well for West.
“How can I not think it was great to celebrate with all my brothers?” said junior Jacob VanDerLinden.
