Barnyard Hosts 4th Annual Trintoberfest and Fall Fest

KELLY VAUGHAN ’17
SENIOR EDITOR
This past Saturday, Oct. 22, Trinity College Barnyard EAC hosted the 4th annual Trintoberfest and Fall Fest. Due to the weather, the 21+ Trintoberfest event was moved to Hamlin Hall, while other activities and food for the under 21 crowd were available in Vernon Social. Despite the weather, there was a large student turnout at both events across campus. Oktoberfest is a traditional German fair that lasts for upwards of three weeks; Barnyard’s one-day spin on this festival has been an extremely popular event among students for the past several years. Students who had attended Oktoberfest in Germany while studying abroad came dressed in authentic lederhosen, while others wore t-shirts from previous Trintoberfests. Keeping with the traditional blue and white color scheme, customary checkered tablecloths, banners, napkins, and signage decorated the room.
Planning for Trintoberfest is certainly not an overnight task. Griffin Hunt ’17, President of Barnyard, emphasized that it takes weeks of “meetings with representatives from Chartwells, the Calendar & Special Events Office, SAIL, external vendors, suppliers, and distributors, and the administration” to create a successful event.
In addition, faculty and staff attended the event. Hunt said, “It provides a really casual venue through which the entire Trinity community can socialize and connect on a human level over hot pretzels and delicious beverages.”
A new initiative this year was partnering with City Steam Brewery, a local brewery in downtown Hartford, to provide two fall brews for students –– the Do Right IPA and Steam Punkin’. With each pint of Do Right IPA purchased, one dollar was donated to the ALS Development Institute. Hunt said he hopes to continue to align Barnyard’s goals with those of Campaign for Community in order to “push Barnyard’s capacity to engage with local partners.”
Chartwells also catered authentic German food, including potato pancakes, soft pretzels, braised cabbage with apples, apple cider doughnuts, and mini pumpkin pies. Elly Worsley ’17, Vice President of Barnyard, tells the Tripod, “Getting more involved with charitable organizations, and the Hartford community as a whole is something Barnyard is more interested in doing this semester.”
Worsley said the intention of Fall Fest and Trintoberfest was to “create an immersive experience for all class years.” Worsley notes that creating more opportunities for inclusion and shaping new ideas is an overarching goal of Barnyard. She tells the Tripod, “The theme we have for Barnyard this year is really a blend of tradition and innovation, and having events like Trintoberfest be so successful after revamping them is really rewarding.”
Despite the weather, Hunt said Hamlin Hall seemed to be a well received venue among all attendees. Hunt said, “There is talk amongst the administration of perhaps moving Fall Fest and Trintoberfest to be part of Parent’s Weekend so that there is more available programming and higher levels of community engagement.”