Lifestyle

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LIFESTYLE 9/12/25 7:15pm

Elon University Truitt Center destroys annual sand mandala

By Emma Luckman

The Sacred Space in Numen Lumen was filled with members of the Elon community and beyond as Tibetan Buddhist monks Geshe Sangpo and Geshe Tenzin from the Kadampa Center pushed the vibrant sand of the Green Tara sand mandala into the middle of a table to represent that nothing is permanent. Hillary Zaken, Director of Multifaith Programming and Engagement at Elon University, said starting the year off with a strong symbol of peace within the sacred space, is essential to harmonious academics. “The beginning of the year is hectic,” Zaken said. “Everyone's coming in from all kinds of different places. "

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LIFESTYLE 9/12/25 5:24pm

Eso! Jarabe Mexicano returns to perform at Elon

By Lilly Molina

On Sept. 11, Jarabe Mexicano played their Fiesta and Familia program in McCrary Theatre. This is Jarabe Mexicano’s second time on campus after performing last year. During Jarabe Mexicano’s last visit to Elon, they were in a rush to get back to the West Coast, according to Acoser. However, this time the band has time to check out the local community. “We often like to go out and visit your community and go see the sites or both,” Alcoser said. “Maybe visit the Hispanic community, the nearest Hispanic community.”

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LIFESTYLE 9/11/25 3:12pm

Elon University Truitt Center hopes to start year with community, compassion with annual sand mandala ceremony

By Nia Bedard

Elon University’s Truitt Center for Religious & Spiritual Life welcomed Tibetan Buddhist monks Geshe Sangpo and Geshe Tenzin from the Kadampa Center in Raleigh for the center’s twelfth annual Green Tara Sand Mandala Ceremony at Numen Lumen. “It is appropriate at the beginning of the school year to conduct, to sort of allow those feelings of compassion, peace and harmony to ripple throughout our space, throughout our campus, throughout our students,” multifaith second-year leadership intern at the Truitt Center Lizbeth Torres-Tomas said. 

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LIFESTYLE 9/5/25 8:17pm

Elon University students paint, plant at Community Garden

By Emma Luckman

Sustainability-focused student organizations including the Garden Club, Student Sierra Coalition, an organization that focuses on environmental conservation, and Elon’s environmental fraternity, Kappa Alpha Omicron, worked with the Office of Sustainabilitygathered at Elon University’s Community Garden to paint pots and plant succulents at Planting for the Planet on Sept. 5. The event provided attendees with a way to meet new people, connect with nature and learn about climate change. “The planet is getting warmer,” Associate Director of Sustainability for Education and Outreach Kelly Harer said. ”What we do in the Office of Sustainability is bring people together because it can be really scary.”

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LIFESTYLE 9/3/25 12:00am

Best of 2026

By Elon News Network

Based on surveys of students, faculty, staff, and local residents, Best of 2026 highlights the best food, local businesses, sports and more in the area, providing a curated guide to community favorites.

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LIFESTYLE 9/2/25 10:34pm

Class of 2026 reflects on journey at annual kickoff

By Katrina Holtz

The class of 2026 gathered for Senior Kickoff Under the Oaks on Sept. 2, marking the first official event of the year for seniors. For many students, the kickoff was a chance to pause and appreciate the journey from convocation to commencement. Environmental science major Olivia Levy said standing Under the Oaks again brought her back to the start of her time at Elon. “It feels like it’s coming full circle,” Levy said. “I’m really proud of all my accomplishments, and I’m excited to see what I do next. I want to contribute to the planet and see real solutions made.”

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LIFESTYLE 8/30/25 9:10pm

Elon University’s BSU cookout builds camaraderie on campus

By Sarah T. Moore

The Welcome B(l)ack Cookout is the Black Student Union’s first event of fall semester. This year, the event took place Aug. 30, filling Phi Beta Kappa Commons with laughter and music. Senior and President of BSU Maleah Proctor said that this event means a lot to her. “It’s really near and dear to my heart,” Proctor said. “That’s one of the reasons it was so important for me to continue with BSU. It created such a safe space and was such an important part of me starting my journey here at Elon that I wanted to continue that for other people.”

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LIFESTYLE 8/30/25 5:04pm

‘It’s more than just milk’: Milk Club hosts first ‘Cownival’ with Late Night Elon

By Rachel Holley

Late Night Elon hosted a carnival event Friday night with Milk Club on Young Commons. The two hour event, which had over 150 attendees, included games, food, ice cream sundaes and milk shots. Creative director of Milk Club’s outreach committee Eli Hruska says the club is also for those who don’t like milk. “It’s more than just milk. Whether you’re lactose intolerant, whether you just don't like milk, don't believe in milk, you should still come by,” Hruska said.

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LIFESTYLE 8/27/25 9:50am

Una nueva tienda abre sus puertas en el centro de Elon

By Fiona McAllister

Una nueva tienda de ropa ha abierto sus puertas en el centro de Elon. Se espera que la tienda, llamada Brown, esté completamente operativa en las próximas dos semanas, según el propietario, Justin Duszlak. Brown se encuentra en East Lebanon Avenue, en el local que anteriormente ocupaba la boutique Simply Oak antes de su cierre el 31 de marzo. Duszlak comentó que las renovaciones comenzaron el 4 de julio y finalizaron en aproximadamente un mes. Duszlak indicó que su objetivo era tener la tienda funcionando en septiembre para el nuevo año escolar.

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LIFESTYLE 8/27/25 9:40am

New shop opens its doors in downtown Elon

By Fiona McAllister

A new clothing store has set up shop in downtown Elon. The store, named Brown, is expected to be fully operational in the next two weeks, according to store owner Justin Duszlak. Brown is located on West Lebanon Avenue, in the store previously used by the boutique Simply Oak before its closing March 31. Duszlak said renovations started July 4 and finished updating the storefront in around a month. Duszlak said her goal was to have her store up and running by September for the new school year. Brown opened earlier than expected on Aug. 22 for Elon’s new student move-in day.

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LIFESTYLE 8/26/25 11:34am

‘First Gen’ memoir inspires Elon University class of 2029 to share first-generation college stories

By Liya Rike

Every year, Elon University picks one book to help incoming students start important conversations. This year’s pick is “First Gen: a memoir” by Alejandra Campoverdi. The book, chosen as part of Elon’s Common Reading Program, dives into Campoverdi’s experience as a first-generation college student. She writes about identity, family expectations and the pressure of being the “first and only” in spaces that weren’t made for her. Associate Director of First-Year Initiatives Paula Patch is the chair of the Common Reading Committee, and said she believes the book is helping freshman students think differently about what it means to start something new.

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LIFESTYLE 8/26/25 6:53am

Elon University Living-Learning Communities host kickoff event

By Trista Panagakos

One of the last events of orientation weekend for members of Elon’s Living-Learning Communities is the LLC Kickoff, hosted in McKinnon Hall. There, all 27 of Elon’s LLCs gathered to engage with each other, play trivia, learn about upcoming events and engage in breakout groups. “I think definitely the community at Elon played a huge part in me coming here,” Emma Luckman, a member of the Communications LLC, said. “I think that the learning living community was kind of an addition to that, in knowing that I was obviously going to have a community and a strong family.”

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LIFESTYLE 8/23/25 7:07pm

Town of Elon Mayor says students make the town different each year

By Alex Nettles

As summer comes to a close in the Town of Elon, migratory freshmen burst into town with new rooms and new questions. Town of Elon Mayor Emily Sharpe witnessed the seasonal turning of the student population since 2021. She said she has hopes for the new Elon students to plant roots here. “I think it is easy to come here and think, ‘Oh, it’s just little Elon.’ But if you don’t care about this you won’t make this your home. You won’t see all of the opportunity that is here,” Sharpe said. 

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LIFESTYLE 8/23/25 4:58pm

Families prepare to leave campus as new Elon University students settle in

By Sarah T. Moore

The family picnic Aug. 23 gave families the opportunity to share a meal during move-in weekend. For many students this will be the last meal they have together until fall or Thanksgiving break. The picnic was spread across campus with tables near the alumni center, Koury Athletic Center and Medallion Plaza. One common topic of conversation across the tables was how streamlined Elon’s move-in day was. “It took the stress out of it,” parent Susie Elster-Sarachek said. “It was just a well-oiled machine.”

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LIFESTYLE 8/10/25 9:39am

Inside the hive: Alamance County Beekeepers and their fight for honeybee survival

By Lilly Molina

Ira Poston begins his day on his farm at 8 a.m. and cares for the over 70 bee colonies on his property. Poston is the Regional Director of the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association, and the former President of the Alamance County Beekeepers for 10 years. The Alamance County Beekeepers is a chapter of the state’s beekeepers associations. It is a nonprofit club focused on educating the community about honeybees by visiting schools, local clubs and even teaching a bee school for aspiring beekeepers. 

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LIFESTYLE 7/1/25 12:30pm

Elon University Year of Service Fellows give back to Alamance County

By Ruby Burckle

Every year, six seniors at Elon University are chosen to participate in the Elon Year of Service Fellows Program; a post-grad opportunity allowing them to live and work in Alamance County, and give back to the community they lived in during the four years of their undergrad experience. “I feel like as an Elon student Alamance County gives us so much and I really liked the idea of being able to give back to the county that we live in for four years,” said Abby Lee, a 2025 fellow.

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LIFESTYLE 6/23/25 8:29am

Elon University students submit album for Grammy consideration

By Anjolina Fantaroni

Elon University students Nailah Ware and Jax Bohnenberger turned their passion for R&B into a project during finals week, creating an album titled “J MAJOR.” Through working together and maintaining industry standard professionalism, they are submitting the album for Grammy consideration this fall. “We said, ‘Let’s do an album,’” Bohnenberger said. Ware is one of 16 students studying in Los Angeles through the Elon in LA program. She said that while working with Bohnenberger, she pushed herself to rap like never before, coming together to make the album cut through the noise — especially in divided times.

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LIFESTYLE 6/19/25 11:07am

Piedmont Shakespeare Company brings audiences accessibility, understandability in production of “Hamlet”

By Megan Walsh

Local theatre organization, Piedmont Shakespeare Company, has begun its inaugural season, performing “Hamlet” across 6 locations throughout the Triad. Piedmont Shakespeare Company is a Shakespeare company that runs in the summer. The company was founded by two Elon University professors — Kim Shively and David McGraw — and a University of North Carolina School of the Arts professor, Carl Forsman. The company aims to bring performances of Shakespeare’s works to communities all over the Piedmont Triad for free. In February 2025, the company announced Hamlet as its first play to be performed in June 2025. 

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LIFESTYLE 6/8/25 4:33pm

Rolling through Gate City: Greensboro’s roller derby revival

By Monika Jurevicius

Abigail Kerr left behind the foam weapons of Dagorhir in search of a new challenge. They found it on the roller derby flat track at the Greensboro Roller Derby in August 2024, where the hits are real, the pace is relentless and they don’t have to hold anything back. Even with no prior experience, roller derby provided a more female-centered and nonbinary community. “It doesn't matter if you’ve never played a sport,” Emly Price, a pivot for GSORD said. “We really welcome everybody — every body type, every gender, every shape. We meet you where you are. 

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LIFESTYLE 6/5/25 7:21am

Elon University alumna makes National Tour debut in “Shucked”

By Sarah T. Moore

Elon music theatre alumna Mallorie Sievert ’24 will spend the next year traveling the United States with the first national tour of Tony Award-winning comedy musical "Shucked." Sievert is one of at least 7 Elon music theatre alumni currently in a national tour. "It's so exciting to be doing what I set out to be doing when I got my BFA and when I moved to New York," Sievert said. "It's like, 'Oh, I did it. You made it.'" As of June 4, she has performed in "Shucked" seven times.

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