Students came out in droves to make a new friend on Tuesday, September 13, despite the heat and short rain-shower. Saint Leo’s semi-annual Stuff-a-Plush event came to the courtyard outside the Students Activities Building, allowing any student who came along to assemble a stuffed animal. The selection consisted of either a lamb, a lion, or a wolf. They then got a Build A Bear experience, stuffing their animals with as much stuffing as they pleased. Despite the heat and long line, around 260 students came out to receive their new fluffy playmate.
Juliette Stratis, a sophomore majoring in marketing, worked the event and was overjoyed by the amount of students that attended.
“I love seeing how excited students and faculty get when they get a free stuffed animal in the middle of the school day. I appreciate how much everyone comes together and can take a break from their crazy lives to be a kid and cuddle with a new friend”.
Students were then given their new friend from student volunteers before converging on one of the large boxes filled with stuffing. They stuffed their plush to their heart’s (and animal’s) content.
The event was originally planned to run from 1:00 to 3:00 PM, however, at 2:00 the Florida rain had its way, and the event had to be closed early.
Senior sociology major Hope Swaim planned the event. When asked how she tried to improve the event from last year, she said
“we just tried to make sure everyone had only one stuffed animal that way everyone got one!”.
Even with 250 stuffed animals, the event was so popular they ended up running out of materials. However, there was plenty of stuffing to go around. Even some was left after the rain had started and the event was closed.
All in all, the event was exciting for everyone involved. Students all got a new friend, organizers saw their event come together, and most importantly all of the stuffed animals got a new forever home.
