Hope College welcomes the Fall (Fest)

To kick off the fall season, Hope College’s Student Activities Committee (SAC) hosted their annual Fall Fest at the Post Family Farm. Students who attended had the opportunity to paint pumpkins, enjoy apple cider and donuts, make s’mores, take a hayride, go through a corn maze, learn line dancing and explore the farm! There were goats, cows, chickens and some kittens available for students to interact with.

SAC Director of Logistics, Emma Raybould (’25), gave a quote about Fall Fest saying, “Fall Fest is one of my favorite SAC events! There was a lot of planning that went into it, but we have a great team that invested so much time and energy into creating a fun event for the campus community!” Students were definitely appreciative of all of these efforts, as there were more than two full buses headed to the farm. Hope is blessed to have so many students who want to get involved by creating new connections and continuing beloved traditions both within the school’s community and Holland. Take a hold of every opportunity to build a personal community by going to events like these; you never know who you’ll meet when you take a chance!

When first walking off the bus, students were greeted by MJ Howes (’26) and Sophia Elsie (’27), two core members of SAC, who were full of the fall spirit. They were quick to send people to get their apple cider and donuts at the table behind them – run by Nicky Brunink (’26), one of the co-director of events for SAC, and Syd LaMotte (’26), another core member of SAC. When asked, students said, “The donuts and cider were to die for!”, and “Apple cider is a staple of fall! I’m glad they didn’t run out.” 

Despite the hot weather, students got cozy by the fireside to make some s’mores. Whether your preference is lightly toasted marshmallows or completely burnt, students last night had the option to pair it with Reese’s chocolate peanut butter cups or Hershey’s chocolate, and there was hot cocoa available on the side. Who doesn’t love the combination of melted chocolate and gooey marshmallows? 

After getting snacks, the fun didn’t end! Students could take a hayride to the corn maze at the back of the farm. For most students, the sun had set before they could explore the maze, leading to a spooky atmosphere and spine-tingling adventure as they twisted and turned through the corn. Still, the fun hadn’t ended! Throughout the night, students had the option to learn some line dances in the upper level of the barn decorated with fairy lights. Whether stomping, clapping or dosey-doeing, students got to meet some new faces and create connections through partner dances. One student, when asked about her favorite part of the event said, “Line dancing was my favorite part. It was a lot of fun dancing with my friends,” (Esther Varnel ’28). Another student drew attention to the pumpkin painting event when she said, “I loved chatting and painting pumpkins with my friends.” The event kindly provided both small- and medium-sized pumpkins for students to decorate. There were many Halloween figures found on the pumpkins such as ghosts, cats and frankenstein faces! Other designs included flowers, hearts and even a few Hope anchors!

SAC’s student staff worked hard to pull off this Fall Fest. Students were constantly refilling drinks and donut trays, restocking the logs in the fire pits and keeping students informed of the events available. Make sure you thank them for their hard work by following @hopecollegesac on Instagram and Tik Tok to stay updated on all of the upcoming events!