An event with roots as a traditional tree lighting in front of the Alamance Building, the current Festival of Lights and Luminaries celebration continues to light up campus. The way Elon celebrates the holiday season has grown and shifted to fit the multifaith, diverse culture of the university.
This year’s festival will be held Dec. 2 across the Historic Neighborhood and the Academic Pavilion.
Director of Multifaith Programming and Engagement Hillary Zaken is the coordinator of the Festival of Lights and Luminaries and said the festival really began to take its current shape in 2020.
Zaken said before the pandemic, the event featured a stage set up in front of the Alamance Building with a ceremony that lit up the campus all at once, a Christmas tree lighting and an appearance from Santa Claus.
The event had to change during the pandemic, Zaken said, to eliminate large crowds in one area.
“A certain number of people couldn’t gather in the same place, so having everyone gathered in front of Alamance for that lighting simply was impossible,” Zaken said. “As it turns out, this is a much better way to celebrate the campus that we are and are becoming.”
Archivist and Assistant Librarian Randall Bowman said he has been attending the event since he got hired at Elon in 2000. His first time attending the event was only a few months before Elon transitioned from Elon College to Elon University.
Bowman said in his first years of attending the event, everyone would gather around a stage outside of the Alamance Building, where a brass band and carolers would perform. Then, guests were invited to join the singing for a tree lighting ceremony, something Bowman said he looked forward to every year.
“We would all sing ‘Deck the Halls,’ and that’s when the lights would come on,” Bowman said. “They’d flip on the lights around the fountain and right here in front of Alamance.”
In addition, Bowman said the festivities included the luminaries still seen today, as well as a Hanukkah blessing, a chance for visitors to interact with Santa and Mrs. Claus, and hot cocoa and treats.
While the luminaries have always been a part of the event, Bowman said he has watched them shift from paper bags to the current plastic luminaries used each year. Additionally, he said he has seen the university add the option to donate to the school to have your name on a lantern.
“They put a label on the side, and that would be your luminary,” Bowman said. “That came later, because by that time I got married, and my wife and I would always look for mine.”
When Zaken took over coordinating the festival three years ago, she said one of her plans was to increase the campus partners and traditions present at the event.
“When we think about shared imagery of light, it’s not just about religious, spiritual or ethical identities. It’s about the ways each of our cultures and traditions celebrates,” Zaken said.
Zaken said that having campus partners helps to incorporate more than just the religious and spiritual aspects of the holiday season.
“Looking at all the different ways that we celebrate the season represents our campus in a different kind of way,” Zaken said.
Zaken said this year’s map for the event features 32 stations, including the luminaries divided amongst undergraduate students, seniors, staff and alumni luminaries. Beyond the lanterns, the event includes activities from organizations across campus, such as language and cultural organizations, such as the French Club, Chinese Club, Hillel, African Diaspora at Elon and many more.
President of African Diaspora at Elon Salome Onikolase said the organization has held a booth at the festival for the last several years. This year’s booth is called “From Africa With Light” and offers attendees a chance to reflect.
“A lot of people love attending the Festival of Lights and Luminaries,” Onikolase said. “For people to be able to come to our table and reflect, and for them to be able to know that we have a table that they can come to is such a great opportunity.”
This year, Zaken said three organizations are joining the event to feature tables and activities, including Spectrum Club Elon’s queer-straight alliance, the newly formed Jewish social justice organization Tikkun Olam and representation from the Truitt Center’s Pagan Life community. Zaken said this year will also see the return of the saxophone quartet that has not been a part of the event in the last few years.
Zaken said this event provides the perfect opportunity for students to share the pieces of their culture they want to share without the pressure of someone asking them.
“We are better when we share about ourselves in an environment that’s created for celebration and joy and education,” Zaken said. “I think that’s one of the best things about this event, is it really brings people together by highlighting our diversity and also what unites us at the same time.”
Managing Editor of The Pendulum Sarah T. Moore serves on the Festival of Lights and Luminaries planning committee.