A well-received welcome

As editors of The Eagle, we occasionally get invitations to special dinners that are happening on campus. Almost every time the Board of Trustees comes to campus, an invitation to a dinner arrives in the newsroom, and every time we get one, we are excited to go. 

We appreciate the opportunity to eat the great food provided. However, sometimes we feel a little out of our element because we have few acquittances that are in attendance.

At every meal there is an hour reception before the meal and normally at these receptions, the two people invited from The Eagle are less involved with the other guests and sometimes it leaves us feeling awkward and unwanted.

Regardless, both parties are at fault. We may not be taking the initiative to mingle with the other guests, and they have plenty of people to interact with and do not always recognize our presence.

At most of these events, we stick with the other students who are invited, which usually means Student Senate members and CAB members.

This last Friday was a different story though. Shortly after arriving at the reception in the Chicoine Event Center, we realized we were the only students that had taken up the invitation. Worried that we were going to feel more out of place than at other dinners, we hit the appetizers table to keep ourselves busy. After getting something to snack on, we were approached by an older couple, who wanted nothing more than to just talk.

They asked who we were, where we were from, and general questions about the college and The Eagle. After the couple left, we took a tour of the facility and as we were walking around with other dinner guests, we were met with smiles and direct eye contact.

We were approached yet again by another friendly alum who continued to talk to us and ask questions until it was time to find a seat for the dinner.

While deciding where to sit, we were concerned we would be sitting by ourselves for the night, realizing we didn’t know many other people attending the dinner.

After finding an empty table and sitting for a short two minutes, we were approached by three wonderful ladies who asked if they could join us for the meal. Our table was then filled when Head Men’s Basketball Coach Brett Bargen and his wife joined our table.

During the meal, we were encouraged to be a part of the table conversation and felt welcomed in every way.

The dinner hosted by the CSC Foundation for alumni and trustees was the most welcoming dinner members of The Eagle have attended in a while, and we are sincerely thankful for the invitation and the enjoyable evening.