Cassandra Hagen, features editor 

With the holidays and winter break soon approaching as the semester comes to a close, one event encapsulated the newfound festive spirit on campus perfectly. The Holigay Extravaganza event was a delight to go to and a perfect way to foster community spirit on campus. The event was a collaboration and hosted both by QPA and QIPOC, and the care they took to create the event showed. The evening boasted an array of activities, from karaoke and cookie decorating to an ugly sweater contest. 

It was fittingly planned for the evening of Dec. 1, and you could hear the sound of music and conversation before even coming into the student lounge. The room was bustling with people, and the event was lively and fun. There was karaoke being hosted up front, with students covering Christmas Carols and similarly festive songs. 

There was a variety of food offered, including a fruit tray and a variety of finger foods, including mini deconstructed BLTs and skewers with feta cheese and salmon. There was also a mocktail bar with sparkling water and cranberry juice, as well as eggnog offered. 

Speaking of food, the cookie decorating was my favorite part. With sugar cookies in numerous shapes such as Christmas trees, bells, ornaments and gingerbread men to decorate, along with an assortment of sprinkles and frosting to adorn your cookie creations, the possibilities were endless. It was nice to get to indulge in a holiday tradition in the midst of studying for finals. 

The ugly sweater contest kicked off around 6:45 p.m., with a line of contestants each donning sweaters ranging from cute to eye offending. The rules were simple, with whoever received the biggest cheer from the audience winning and the winner would receive a $75 gift card. As the contestants each took their step forward there was a range of volumes of cheers from the audience, until the winner was decided from the final three. 

Beyond delicious treats and good times, they even offered gift bags that contained various goodies, including a hot chocolate bomb, face masks, hand cream, candy and small squishy fidget toys.

The event started to wind down around 8:00 p.m., and it seemed like time had flown by. Overall this event was so much fun! It offered a great place to talk to and meet new people, as well as a great opportunity to celebrate the upcoming holidays. Expect more fun and engaging events next semester from both QPA and QIPOC!