Access and Success Brings a Winter Wonderland to St. Kate's Families
Every December, St. Kate’s SEEK and Access and Success team up to put on an event for student parents called Winter Wonderland. The annual event is infectious in its energy, bringing some holiday spirit to the CdC third floor Ballroom, where you can hear kids of all ages shrieking as they pelt each other with “snow balls” (rolled up socks) and sprint around the space with temporary tattoos plastered up and down their arms. Many roll up sporting their best holiday gear, with green Grinch faces popping up on sweatshirts and gingerbread frosting-trimmed skirts.
The event is part of Access and Success-based initiatives providing support to student parents at St. Kate’s around the winter holidays. The department also sponsors an “Adopt-A-Family” program that provides holiday time assistance for both parenting and non-parenting students. Last year, 47 students—37 parenting and 10 non-parenting—received monetary assistance for groceries or gifts. Through this assistance, holiday traditions were helped along for 61 children.
Craft table at this year’s Winter Wonderland
Winter Wonderland is a tradition for the staff working just as much as it is for the student parents and children that attend. The event is staffed by students from SEEK, SCA faculty members and Access and Success department workers, many of whom have been in attendance in the past. For senior student workers, it can be bittersweet to staff Winter Wonderland for the last time after watching the same kids get a bit older each winter.
According to graduate student Cecilia Blum, “Winter Wonderland is always a fun event to help at,” Blum said. “It’s great to see families being included in St. Kate’s events, especially ones that cater to younger kids. The kids always seem so excited at the event, especially at the face paint or temporary tattoo station. It’s a great way to start off the holiday season.”
Kids dance around the gift walk
There’s something about Winter Wonderland that stirs up the nostalgia for the winter holiday times as a kid. It’s fun to watch squealing kids go up to a Mr. and Mrs. Claus and truly buy into the magic of it all. It’s fun to act like each hand-drawn reindeer or tree or snowman done at the crafts station is the work of Michelangelo. It’s fun to play-pretend a conspiracy of handing out that secret extra prize chocolate at a game station—even if you know you’re allowed to give them as many as they want.
Sticker activity at this year’s Winter Wonderland
If you want to learn more about campus resources for student parents and support for students around the winter holiday season, learn more at www.stkate.edu/life/student-assistance/student-parent-services.
