The Hardin-Simmons annual University Christmas Party will be from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Thursday on the Anderson Lawn outdoor space.
Cassie Mattern, director of events for HSU, oversees all campus events, campus reservations and summer camps and has been in charge of the University Christmas Party for nine years.
“I get the opportunity to do something new and creative everyday as director of events,” Mattern said. “We make a lot of our own decorations in my office, so a lot of time we have something in the works, which means my office is always a mess.”
This event is to kick off the holiday season at HSU, and is a time for students to enjoy holiday festivities before the end of the fall semester, and the start of winter break.
“There will be opportunities for photos with Santa, listening to music from the College of Arts and Media students, eating holiday treats and drinking cocoa and making smores,” Mattern said. “There are usually some photo opportunities, free Christmas shirts for the first 250 students in line and then the most important part, lighting the lights on campus. It is pure magic.”
Mattern’s favorite part of the event is getting to watch the students have fun and taking advantage of all the picture opportunities that arise from the event.
“Every year after the program is over, my favorite part is seeing all the students running around the lawn taking pictures under the purple tree, on the bridge and by the HSU Christmas tree,” Mattern said. “This is such a fun HSU tradition that has been going on for decades. I am extremely thankful for Tim McCarry, associate vice president for campus operations, and his staff, who have been putting lights on trees and buildings since right before homecoming. This is something that they take lots of pride in, and none of this could happen without them.”
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