Leaves are falling leaving the trees bare for the upcoming winter. But Quinnipiac is a bit greener with the addition of QUIC, Quinnipiac University Irish Club, a new club that hopes to bring Irish culture to the university community.
“Kate MacDonald, the president of QUIC, came up to me during one of our Orientation Weekends two summers ago and said that she wanted to bring the Irish culture to the campus, just as APSA (Asian and Pacific Islander Student Association) and AMICI(Association to Maximize Italian Cultural Influence) had started to do,” said Julie Mantz, the vice president of QUIC and a junior business management major. “We just wanted to promote the culture and widen people’s awareness”
QUIC’s goal is to spread knowledge about Irish culture to Quinnipiac students.
“We want to create an air of acceptance and invite everyone who is interested to join the club,” Jacky Hunt, secretary and a senior English major, said. “You don’t have to be Irish!”
Look for posters in the cafeteria that will have Irish sayings, translations or just a crazy statistic. Each week the poster will change.
Mantz and the rest of the E-board hopes students will become more aware of Irish culture and help to spread it on campus and also just have fun.
“We don’t want it to be a club that people join just to add to their resume. We want them here because they want to be,” Mantz said. “I hope to be a good leader, someone that everyone can come to if they ever need me”
Because this is QUIC’s first year as a recognized organization, the first semester is going to be focused on fundraising and making the club a solid group.
The first QUIC event is “Potato-Palooza”. There will be a baked potato bar with toppings as well as live entertainment, games that include Potato sack races and a Mr. Potato Head contest, and prizes.
This event is being co-sponsored with SHADES (Students Helping Advocate Diversity Education) and will be held on Nov. 29 from 5:30-7:30 in Alumni Hall. Tickets are $2 each and will be sold in the Student Center Nov. 8-12 from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
QUIC hopes to co-sponsor events with other clubs on campus, such as CAP (Community Action Project), Habitat for Humanity and SPB (Student Programming Board).
Some ideas the club has discussed include taking a trip to Boston or New York for St. Patrick’s Day, possibly marching in the Hamden St. Patrick’s Day parade, having Irish step dance lessons, showing an Irish film and doing community service in Hamden.
Meetings are held every other Tuesday, usually in TH217. The next QUIC meeting will be held Nov. 16 in TH327 at 9 p.m.
QUIC is always looking for new members and is open to new ideas for fundraisers or events.
If you’d like to become a member of QUIC, contact Julie Mantz at [email protected] for more information.
May your lives be merry and your hearts be QUIC.
