Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the host of the event.

On October 20, Homecoming, in collaboration with Fraternity and Sorority Life, organized a homecoming mixer to encourage current students to interact with FAU alumni and bond over their connection to the university. 

The event, held on the Housing Lawn, consisted of games, food, airbrush t-shirts, giveaways and various tables for people to socialize and get to know one another. Student Annika Miltenberger said that the event helped her understand what opportunities FAU offers students.

“Being at this event made me feel the amount of community support FAU has to offer,” Miltenberger said. “You can feel how excited people are to know that homecoming week is full of events to get students out of their dorm and socialize with other students and alumni instead of staying inside being stressed about school.”

Miltenberger explained how laid back the event was and gave students the chance to unwind from the stress of being at school. 

Other students, such as Tony Lenchinsky, came to  Party in Paradise without knowing what it was about. Still, he was looking forward to meeting other students and participating in the different activities the event had to offer.

“The free food is what I saw first, so I decided to check out what was happening,” he said. “I found that this event was a friendly environment for people to come out and socialize, and I’m glad I decided to check it out when I did. I get to spend time with my peers while learning about the university that I’m a part of.”

The free food, games and giveaways were not the only activities the event offered. The event leader, Kyla Flannery, gave insight into the performance at 6:30 p.m., known as “The Stroll-Off.”

“The Party in Paradise event itself is to kick off the football game tomorrow. But the performance is known as the Stroll-Off for the National Pan-Hellenic Council and University United Greek Council,” Flannery said. “There are judges here for the dance performance, and a lot of alumni come out to support. The Stroll-Off is an FAU homecoming tradition, but this year, we decided to combine the Party In Paradise and the Stroll-Off to create a bigger event so there are more current students and alumni coming together.”

Kennedy Burnette is a contributing writer for University Press. For more information about this article, you can reach her via Instagram @kennedy.burnette or email her at [email protected].