Celebration of Pei in Palm Court

Dance music, a small stage and colorful decorations are accouterments that are not usually present in Palm Court on a Sunday afternoon. On April 13, however, all of the above adorned the “Center of the Universe.” In honor of the master behind the New College Pei Complex, I.M. Pei, “Pei Day” is a Resident Advisor (RA) event that occurs annually around this famous architect’s
birthday.

On April 26 Pei will turn 97 years old. Every Pei Day, students come together and celebrate both the architect’s birthday and the common experience of living in the Pei residence hall. Pei Day hosted a variety of games and contests including a doughnut eating contest, water balloon fights and an air band competition.

With $315 approved by the Student Allocations Committee (SAC), Pei Day had plenty of pizza, juice and candy. The pièce de resistance was the large sheet cake with “Happy Pei Day!” written in icing. To save money, R.A.’s created piñatas out of the leftover Capri Sun boxes, which students gleefully crushed to reveal the handfuls of candy inside.

R.A. Robert “Matt” Klinkel walked around with a plate full of doughnuts tied up with streamers for a doughnut eating competition. Other R.A.’s cut the cake, handed out pizza and played music. A highlight of Pei Day was the air band competition, where groups of students chose a song and rocked out with their air guitars. Water balloon fights were another popular activity, as students ran through Palm Court soaking their friends with these airborne weapons.

A successful celebration of Pei and all that it stands for, Pei Day brought students together in a day of amazing food and fun.

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