On Nov. 6, several organizations such as Student Government Association, TAMU-CC Honors Program, University Center Programs, Recreational Sports and more all helped create the outdoor Islander Wind Jam for students to participate in near the Performing Art Center’s lawn.

Students who participated in the event were asked to RSVP beforehand in order to fill out a  liability waiver that allowed them into the event. At check in, students were given a yellow wristband along with a ticket voucher to present to the staff members to get free food such as burgers, vegetarian burgers, nachos and more.

Every organization had their very own task to keep the event running smoothly. Rec Sports did water sports such as kayaking and paddle boarding across Ocean Drive. Students were able to fly kites that were distributed from SGA and receive free t-shirts. Participants were able to interact with petting zoo animals that ranged from a goat, pig, iguana, chickens, ducks, bunnies, turtles, snakes and more.

Assistant Vice President for Student Life Lisa Perez helped put together the Islander Wind Jam and played an important role in collaborating other organizations to take part in making this event run smoothly. Perez encouraged students to attend this event to get involved with other fellow students during this pandemic where everyone feels the overwhelming stress from the semester ending. “Students are feeling like they aren’t connected and the whole goal is just to have students come out and interact with one another,” said Perez.

“There are things to do on campus,” continued Perez, “We’ve been offering a lot of things virtually and now that the university is moving to a stage three in the event guidelines, it gives us the opportunity to do a little more things face to face.”

Health science major Olivia Saenz, a sophomore here at TAMU-CC, attended this event because she saw how the campus heavily advertised for students to participate. Saenz mentioned how she and her roommate brought other friends to tag along and enjoy the day together. “Being an animal lover, my favorite part was the animal exhibits,” said Saenz, “But the kayaking was a super close second.”

“My friends and I kept our masks on, kept our distance from other people, and sanitized before and after every exhibit/station. This event was super fun and a great way to safely have fun, so I’d love for more events to happen like this for the Spring semester,” remarked Saenz.