Crazy Month of October
Hello everybody!
I've been so busy for the past two weeks that I'm surprised I haven't dropped from exhaustion. The whole college community has actually been very busy for the past month planning the Inauguration events for our new president, Dr. Cornacchia. Inauguration week went very well, and I'll write more about it later.
October 5-7 (Columbus Day Weekend)
This weekend I went to a conference with the Asian American Student Union at Virginia Tech. The conference is called F.I.N.D. which stands for Filipino Intercollegiate Networking Dialogue. FIND is held every semester at a different college. This year it was at Virginia Tech in beautiful Blacksburg, Virginia. The theme was Pagtutoro: The World is our Stage. Basically, a lot of college students, mostly of Filipino descent, come together to learn more about our culture and spread Asian awareness. Anybody is welcome to attend and it's a lot of fun. I wrote about the past FIND at Ramapo College in March of this year.
This year we left SPC at about 5 and took the PATH train to New York Penn Station where a bus picked us up along with other colleges in the Metropolitan New York area who were going to Virginia with us. There were about 12 members of AASU who represented Saint Peter's College at the Conference. The bus ride was so long! We left New York City around 8 and arrived at the hotel around 3 in the morning. We decided not to sleep and just got ready for the conference which started at 9 that Saturday.
The conference started with a speaker: Sonia Aranza, who told us to "Aspire to Inspire" She was selected as "Outstanding Woman of the Year" by the National Association of Professional Asian American Women. After that we got separated into groups and attended 3 workshops. They were very well done and I learned a lot about my culture that I hadn't known before. Not only did I learn a lot, but I met a lot of people at the Conference and started networking with other students from across the East Coast. At the end of the Conference we ended with another speaker: Francis Tanalgo-Aguas who is a prestigious professor who teaches at the College of William & Mary and told us about meeting the Queen of England and how spreading Asian awareness is important.
After the Conference we walked around Virginia Tech which is such a beautiful campus. It's huge compared to St. Peter's. After we walked around and grabbed some dinner, we saw the Talent Show that is always held after FIND. There were great Filipino traditional dances performed as well as contemporary performers.
The next day we left Virginia around 12:30 after getting lunch at Sonic. It was my first time eating there and I am convinced that we should have them all over New Jersey. On the way home we got stuck for 2 hours in horrible Pennsylvania traffic. We got back Sunday night around 11:30. Thank goodness that SPC was closed that Monday to commemorate Columbus Day and I got a reprieve-even though I had to work at L'Oreal that day.
Here are some beautiful pictures from Virginia:
SPC showing our love for the Hokies!
At one of the conference rooms...
Ordering at Sonic!
Thursday, October 11
Tonight was the Inaugural Ball for Dr. Cornacchia. I got a few of my friends to join me and it was a blast! I had so much fun. The ball was actually my first dance at St. Peter's and it was a great time. We got to see Dr. Cornacchia have fun dancing with his wife and with us students. It was held at Puccini's Restaurant-a beautiful reception hall just down the street from St. Peter's. The food was great and the dancing was better! Unfortunately I came really late because it took me forever to get back to Jersey City from L'Oreal. The traffic was horrible because of the rain, but I got there just in time to dance.
With Dr. Cornacchia-he's so nice!
Students having fun doing the Congo line!
A group of my friends and I
October 12-14
I helped lead the first retreat of the year at Campus Ministry: Catholic, On Your Own. 6 of us along with Mary-Sue and Doug of Campus Ministry helped lead a very successful retreat in which we got to speak about being Catholic in the everyday world and on campus. My talk was about being Catholic and Relationships with Peers. We also invited an outside speaker: Allan Wright who is a professor and attended Seton Hall University. He spoke to us about Marriage and Romantic Relationships in the Catholic tradition. He was a great speaker and definitely captured our attention with his great talk.
All of us with Allan Wright
We also had great discussion groups and had a really fun time. We had a nature walk at the Shrine of St. Joseph's which was down the street from the retreat house in Stirling, NJ. It was so beautiful there and it was a big contrast from Jersey City. Not only did we have discussions and talks, but we also had the chance to have fun. We got to play Red Rover, eat yummy apple and pear pie, had a talent show and watch Nacho Libre. My friend Conrad and I cooked a traditional Filipino dinner: Adobo made from chicken which everybody loved. Dwayne cooked Chickan Schwarma, a delicious falafel like dish that he ate this summer in Israel.
I had a lot of fun and got to meet freshmen and other students on this retreat. My friend Jacob and I, during our Peaches and Jacob Variety Show, performed "I Need You" by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, we danced to High School Musical, and others performed hilarious improv skits.
Playing Red Rover
At the Dinner Table
Dwayne eating our yummy apple pie with Mary Sue and I in the background baking
I highly encourage everybody to attend at least one retreat through Campus Ministry. It's a great way to rest, relax, eat home cooked food, have great deep discussions and get to know people very well. There are more retreats this year: Koinonia and a Men's Retreat. Everyone should definitely come!
Monday, October 15
YIKES! I had two Mid-terms today back-to-back: first English, then Women's History. I had been so busy so I was really nervous because I probably should have prepared more for them. Fortunately I got them back the following Wednesday and I aced them-woo hoo! Sometimes I'm so busy that I have to take a step back and remember that first and foremost I am a student first. I should probably concentrate more on my studies, but I just love being involved on campus.
This evening was the Coffee House. It was a ceremony in which the school uncovered the portrait of Fr. Loughran, our president last year. He was the 21st president of St. Peter's. I sang with the McMullen Chorale. We sang Rhythm of Life as our piece. We performed along with the Glee Club, Voices of Praise, and Argus Eyes. It was a great night of singing talent and the portrait was on display. We all dedicated this night of performance to Fr. Loughran who loved the arts and performance. We all remembered him in our hearts.
With Fr. Loughran's portrait
Argus Eyes performing a piece from the Pirates of Penzance
Wednesday, October 17
Today the Class of 2010 hosted the Class Wars. Each Class (Class of '08, '09, etc.) competed against each other in the quad from 12-1. There was a pie eating contest, pie throwing at one of our professors, and a Gladiator match just to name a few. I sold pizzas, ando thers were selling awesome SPC Class t-shirts. The Class of 2010 had to wear blue; 2011-red, 2009-gray, and 2008-green. It was a great time to compete with other people and see everybody gather together for this event. Noel Borges, the Class President of 2010 informed me that we raised roughly around $910. We will be sending this for the victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. Great job everybody!
The Class of 2010 officers/volunteers who made this event possible
Around 5 there was a barbecue for Dr. Cornacchia in the quad. Thank goodness it was beautiful all day. There was great food, an introduction of Dr. Cornacchia and dessert afterwards. After that I had a Student Senate meeting at 7 where we got to speak to the new Director of Residence Life-David Surratt. He seems very nice and serious about his position. After the meeting, I went straight to Chorus practice in Rankin Hall.
Wow, my days are so busy!
Thursday, October 18
We are counting down to the Inauguration Ceremony for Dr. Cornacchia. Today for lunch I attended a Jesuit luncheon in which six Jesuits were celebrated for their hard work on campus and in our community. Some of them included Fr. Schroth, Fr. Joe Papaj, Fr. Wrynn, and Fr. Kuntz. They are all members of the Society of Jesus and are great teachers and examples on campus at St. Peter's.
Saturday, October 20
The day we've all been waiting for: Dr. Cornacchia's Inauguration as the 22nd President of St. Peter's College. I woke up bright and early to practice with the McMullen Chorale for the mass held at St. Aedan's church. I had never been at St. Aedan's before and the church is absolutely beautiful. The ceremony went well with Fr. Kuntz as the main celebrant along with the Jesuit community. The Chorale provided beautiful mass music, some of which was composed specifically for Dr. Cornacchia by Enzo Fonzo, a member of the St. Peter's faculty.
The McMullen Chorale along with Voices of Praise and Enzo Fonzo in St. Aedan's
Right afterwards I grabbed lunch provided for us at the Alumni house. Then I had to rush over to the Yanitelli Recreational Center to practice for the actual Inauguration Ceremony. I, along with 5 other students got a chance to talk to Dr. Cornacchia in our native language.
At the beginning of the ceremony I processed with a group of students chosen along with delegates from colleges across the country as well as professors of the college. I got to say "Congratulations and Good Luck" to him in Tagalog (Filipino) which sounded something like this: "Maligayang Bati at pagpalain ka nawa. Mabuhay St. Peter's." I was so nervous speaking in front of so many important people. There were several speakers who gave speeches to celebrate the installation of Dr. Cornacchia including Megan Craven, Student Senate President and Dr. Hamilton who spoke from the SPC community. Voices of Praise performed. The McMullen Chorale performed Thula Sizwe, a traditional South African freedom song. The ceremony ended with us singing St. Peter's Alma Mater and the recessional.
The Inauguration Ceremony went well. The Inauguration Committee worked very hard and they held a successful Ceremony. Congratulations to Dr. Cornacchia!
Students in the Procession
Afterwards there was a reception in which the best food I have ever had at St. Peter's was served. There was a live jazz band, great food, desserts, and company! And it was all in celebration of our new president. The ceremonies went very well and I am honored to be a part of everything on our campus.
After the reception, my roommate Veronica and I decided to go to New York City to go shopping. Halloween is coming up and I had to think of a costume to wear. We went shopping at Manhattan Mall and decided to drop by Magnolia Bakery to get some yummy cake, cupcakes, and banana pudding. Magnolia Bakery is in the Village on Bleecker Street. I recommend everyone to go! I've mentioned the bakery a bunch of times in my blogs and I simply can't get enough of their cupcakes and baked goods. There's usually a long line outside the small shop, but the line is worth it!
Now I'm exhausted but I still have to write two papers for tomorrow and dreading the Italian, Spanish, and French mid-term exam that I know is coming up. I hope you enjoyed reading about my busy and hectic, but fun life here at St. Peter's. Until next time....