OCR Text |
Show 4 FRIDAY JANUARY 20, 2017 ’Cats craft hypnotic jars to stress less RACHEL STORM | The Signpost By RACHEL PLOHARZ STORM News Correspondent Davis Campus Wildcats got crafty on Jan. 17 when dozens of students gathered in the D3 atrium to make stress bottles. Stress bottles, often referred to as calm down jars and glitter bottles on Pinterest, are used to regulate emotion. They are made of glitter, water, baby oil and food coloring. Students blended the ingredients into mason jars, sealed the lids, gave them a few good shakes and swirled the mixture around the jar. Amber Reich, a 16-year-old NUAMES student, said, “It’s hypnotic — it’s really awesome.” Lauren Williams, traditional student co-director, organized the event. “It’s a fun, quick craft to kick off the se- mester. ... We hope to give students tools to succeed,” Williams said. “These help students get some stress out or refocus on something else for a minute.” Prior to the event, Erik Ashby, faculty advisor and coordinator of Student Involved Leadership at Davis Campus, had some initial concerns about the student turnout. “If we get 20–30 students, I’ll be thrilled,” Ashby said. Ashby wasn’t the only one who was concerned about student turnout. “I’m hoping for 30. If we get that, I’ll consider it a great turnout,” Williams added. The event was scheduled 4:30–6 p.m., outside of peak traffic times at the Davis Campus. In addition, the event relied on word-of-mouth advertising. The only published information of the event went out in the Davis Campus weekly newsletter. A total of 28 students attended the event. “This event was more successful than we thought it would be,” Williams said. She attributed much of the success to the teamwork between her and traditional student co-director McKell Costley. “McKell and I work really well together,” Williams said. “I’m task-oriented and am good at planning, and she is social and got everyone to come out.” “It’s important we are reaching out to all students — even those who aren’t on campus during the main times,” Ashby said. “An event like this is a quick and easy way to do that.” Shawnelle Oleson created purple base by mixing the red and blue food coloring. She accented her bottle with gold glitter. “It was nice and fast on my way to class and still really fun,” Oleson said while RACHEL STORM | The Signpost RACHEL STORM | The Signpost Weber State University students craft glittery, stress-relief jars at Davis Campus on Jan. 17. Shawnelle Oleson tests the “hypnotic” properties of the so-called “calm-down jars.” MLK ››continued from front Collier called students and community members to action by asking them to serve during the week by participating in the events that are happening on the WSU campus. “We want everyone to be involved in these events,” said Collier. Betty Sawyer, adviser for Black Scholars United, addressed the audience, saying, “As we see everyone here today, that is a testament to the energy that can be harvested to do the work that we need to do. We need to move on from having the breakfast and roll up our sleeves and remind everyone that there is work that needs to be done.” Angelyn McKelley, a member of the Order of the Eastern Star who volunteered to help set up for the event that morning, said, “We try to help the community as much as we can through events like this. The struggle and the mission that Martin Luther King was on with civil rights, are still a movement that should be supported today in 2017 more than ever.” Sawyer has been part of the MLK breakfast and freedom walk for over 20 years. “Dr. King’s day means a time for all of us to come together to reflect on his life and his legacy and to recommit ourselves to doing the work that is needed to keep the dream alive and to also make our communities and state a better place,” said Sawyer. shaking her jar. “I can feel it working already — it’s so pretty.” Brittany Copper, customer service specialist at the Davis Nontraditional student center, attended the event. “Non-trad students have unique stressors and struggles, so I’m going to keep mine in the center. I really think it will help our students calm down and de-stress,” Copper said. Michelle Willingham is a non-traditional student at WSU and a mother of two. “This will be great for time-outs,” Willingham said. “My oldest son has ADHD, and this will keep him busy for a very long time — it’s a cute idea.” Comment on this story at signpost.mywebermedia.com RACHEL STORM | The Signpost Twenty-eight students were in attendence at the event. Sawyer explained that by looking at the theme of the event, in service and in being one community that will keep Dr. King’s legacy alive. “I will leave with a quote from Dr. King that says, ‘Everyone can be great because everyone can serve,’” Sawyer said. McKelley, who echoed Sawyer’s comments, said, “For Dr. King’s legacy to live on, I think people need to be open minded. I believe this is not just a holiday for African Americans but a holiday for the people.” The event was a collaboration between the Marshall White Center, UServe Utah, WSU Diversity Team, NAACP, Black Scholars United and the Service Team. For more information on Special Services events contact Danielle Collier at daniellecollier@weber.edu, and for information about BSU contact bettysawyer@weber.edu. Comment on this story signpost.mywebermedia.com Editor-in-Chief Charles Bowker cbowk.91@gmail.com A&E Editor Brooke Facer brookefacer@mail.weber.edu Photo Editor Emily Crooks emilymargaretcrooks@gmail.com Office Manager Georgia Edwards gedwards@weber.edu Chief Copy Editor Cole Eckhardt eckhardtco@gmail.com S&T Editor Kellie Plumhof kellieplumhof@mail.weber.edu Graphics Editor Maddy Van Orman mlvanorman@gmail.com Ad Manager Shelley Hart shelleyhart@weber.edu News Editor Ezekiel Lee ezekielbsc@gmail.com Spanish Editor Paula Ninataype paulaninataype@mail.weber.edu Webmaster Liz Ruttenbur lizruttenbur@weber.edu Sports Editor Cydnee Green cydneegreen@mail.weber.edu Digital Content Coordinator Gabe Cerritos Digital Content Editor Adviser Jean Reid Norman jeannorman@weber.edu The Signpost is a student publication, written, edited and drafted by Weber State University students. Student fees fund the printing of this publication. Opinions or positions voiced are not necessarily endorsed by the university. The Signpost reserves the right to edit for reasons of space and libel and to refuse to print any letter. Letters should be submitted online to thesignpost@weber.edu and read Letter to the Editor in the subject box. Letters should not exceed 350 words. |