Holiday Traditions at Midwestern University

This is the time of year when traditions reign supreme. At Midwestern University we have our own set of holiday traditions: the Thanksgiving Breakfast and the Holiday Lunch.

Both events have been a staple of the holiday season on the Glendale campus since we opened over ten years ago. Despite the rapid growth of the campus, President Kathleen Goeppinger has kept the tradition alive and even with 400 people instead of four, the sense of family fun remains.

As with many holiday traditions, both our events have food—lots of food. Events Manager Johnny Watson fixed us up this year with a variety of tasty treats. I was partial to the little apple strudels at our luncheon. Both events also celebrate the spirit of gift-giving, as Dr. Goeppinger raffles off a number of gifts to lucky faculty and staff. It is so much fun to listen to the shouts of delight as someone’s lucky number is drawn. At the Holiday Lunch we have the added tradition of departments collaborating to come up with holiday tunes that showcase their songwriting talent more than their signing talent.

I enjoy food, singing, and gifts as much as the next person but that isn’t my favorite part of our Midwestern University holiday traditions. The Office of Communications, of which I am a part, is the office responsible for planning these two events. So each year I get to man the door and hand out the raffle tickets as everyone enters. And that is my favorite part of our holiday tradition. No, I am not being sarcastic. It is so easy to get caught up in our daily grind. I am constantly on the phone or email taking care of this project or that project. Standing at the door handing out tickets I get to talk to faculty and staff I may have not seen face-to-face in a year, despite the fact we are both on the same campus. I get to set aside work deadlines and ask about families, vacations, and resolutions for the new year. It is great to reconnect with everyone and wish them well. After all, Midwestern University is my work family and holidays should be spent with family.