The air was warm for December, but the smell of cider and a drifting scent of pine alluded to something undeniably colder. There's something about holiday lights that puts a chill on the breeze, and a glow in the heart. When the holiday season hits, a sparkle sneaks itself somehow into the sleep-deprived eyes of an exam-weary college student.
Over 100 people gathered at the front of the Horseshoe Tuesday night to take part in the 60th annual tree lighting ceremony. The crowd was made up mostly of students, but there were families with small children scattered about, as well as members of the faculty and Columbia citizens.
“I heard about it somehow, through Facebook or Twitter or one of those, and thought I’d come by,” said first year political science student Madeline Bonder. “I stopped by Cool Beans to get something warm, then came on over.”
In front of Bonder on the grass was one of the PAALS service dogs, dressed to the nines in a “Let It Snow” motif sweater with a false beard and Santa hat on. He was just as excited for the event as his human counterparts.
“I love to see the hope of the future reflected in the hearts, lives and values of the gamecock family,” Victoria Cartier, a self-described "proud gamecock mom," said as she looked on from the edge of then crowd. Cartier drove in from Cayce to watch the event.
At the podium, USC President Harris Pastides, who later lit the tree, took a moment just to look up at the evergreen before the crowd.
“How many of you have seen the tree at Rockefeller Center in New York?” Pastides asked. A few people raised their hands. “Well, it may be taller, but I don’t think it’s any more beautiful than ours.”
The tree lighting ceremony is as old as the university’s president. (“I’m not excited about that,” he told the crowd.) It began in 1954, “the year Elvis cut his first hit. ... When Bing Crosby sang and starred in White Christmas,” Pastides said to give a sense of scale.
“This is a time for Christians and Jews and Muslims to all come together to light our tree,” he said.
And this year, the tree was donated to the university by a regional tree farm.
The event not only celebrated brotherhood and the upcoming holiday season, but also the generosity of the Carolinian spirit. This year, as in years past, the Carolina Service Council, who are partly responsible for the annual lighting event, partnered with the Salvation Army for its regional Christmas toy drive.
Piles of stuffed stockings sat nestled up under the tree.
Matthew Isales, director of the Carolina Service Council, commended student and faculty donors alike on their “tremendous service effort” this year in the Carolina Cares Donation Drive.
Isales also declared the Families Helping Families meal packaging program a success. For Thanksgiving, students packed meals for local families who couldn’t normally afford a traditional holiday meal.
“As we sat down to Thanksgiving dinner, 23 families sat down with us.” Isales said.
In addition to the toy drive, students came together to write over 1,300 holiday cards to send to servicemen and women overseas who would not be able to make it home for Christmas.
This year marks the 45th anniversary of Carolina Cares, and, as Isales put it, “students' desire to lend a hand” is still strong all these years later.
Along with individual donors, many student organizations, academic departments and Greek life chapters came together to stuff stockings, too.
Major Roger Coulson, a representative of the Salvation Army of the Midlands, also spoke Tuesday night.
“Over 3,800 children have been ‘adopted’ by the South Carolina Salvation Army,” he said. “And because of you, those children will have something to wake up to Christmas morning.” Dec. 2
Major Coulson and his wife have been officers of the Salvation Army for 30 years and plan on retiring within the next decade, but he said working with Carolina students has always been inspiring to both of them.
“There’s no word in your language that says it can’t be done,” Major Coulson said. “Every year, you put your minds together to solve a problem.”
He invited students to “expect change” from “the fact that people can renew their hopes for the future,” thanks to donation drives like Carolina Cares.
“This event exemplifies the warmth I feel from everyone on this campus,” said Student Body President Lindsay Richardson. She encouraged students to “give your friends hugs after this ceremony," at which point Cocky, who had been circulating through the crowd, began hugging everyone nearby.
Efforts such as Carolina Cares embody the “high spirits of being a Carolinian,” to Richardson, who encouraged everyone to follow the “self-created light” within themselves.
The Hand Middle School Chorus closed the ceremony with a medley of familiar tunes that had the crowd swaying and singing along.
“Because of you,” Isales said. “Families, children and soldiers can celebrate with us this holiday season.”
“Because of you,” Pastides said. “Our world shines a little brighter.”