St. Thomas students, faculty and staff gathered in the atrium of Anderson Student Center Monday to light the school Christmas tree in the annual tree-lighting ceremony.
The tree, which reaches all the way to the third floor of the building, was adorned with purple and white ornaments and topped with a star.
The school female a capella group, Cadenza, sang “The First Noel” to start the ceremony and would later be joined by its male counterpart, the Summit Singers, for other carols.
After the first carol, Associate Chaplain Neil Ellingson gave a brief talk about the meaning of Advent and encouraged students not to get too absorbed into their cell phones.
“One of the reasons we have it (Advent) is to address boredom,” Ellingson said while holding his cell phone. He added that phones “weave boredom into our lives without us even knowing it.”
After Ellingson’s talk, Interim President Rob Vischer took the stage and led a countdown from 10 to light the Christmas tree, other decorative lights in ASC and lights throughout campus.
Some students even said the ceremony put them “into the Christmas spirit.”
Afterward, students gathered in Scooter’s to meet and take photos with “Santa Reg,” who is St. Thomas Public Safety sergeant Reggie Wright. He said that he enjoyed the fun and camaraderie that came with being Santa and was excited to play the role again this year.
“It’s great that after two years of isolation, we can come together peacefully,” Wright said.
Miles Schiffer can be reached at schi9629@stthomas.edu.