What an event! An entire semester of work coming to fruition and I was able to walk with my classmates through the implementation. The absolute best thing about this event was definitely getting to see my class compete, plan, and put it all on. While I had nothing to do with the beginning stages, my volunteering experience was like none other. I was a volunteer to my peers at an event for more of my peers. This was such a rare way to experience a banquet.

While there was seemingly less to do than there were volunteers, I still managed to find something to do within the four hours I helped out. At first I was running minuscule errands for some people, then I became the greeter and door director, until I finally worked some behind the food table. One thing I loved about this banquet was that the Recreation Park and Tourism Science department are all so kind and appreciative of the work my class put into this event.

I think that this event was a success for many reasons. Preparation was on point, décor was gorgeous, food was said to be delicious, and the purpose of the event was to honor fellow students so I love how we as students were able to plan for that. Things that I would recommend for the future Scholarship Banquets would be a little more precise volunteer list. There are many things that needed to be done but they became a little rushed because no one was specifically assigned to them. Another observation was the slide show’s inconsistency with the honorees. Now, I heard that this was double-checked and that the program was followed, but I think a good way to remedy this mistake from occurring again would to be triple-checking with those honoring the students to make sure they are satisfied with the program just in case some last minutes changes could happen in the slide show. When it comes to risk management, I think that the staff did an amazing job of keeping themselves out of the storm that was brewing but also making sure the door attendant, which was my role, warned of slippery floors and managed those floors by keeping all umbrellas outside of the venue.

Overall, this event went very well and while things could have been in better conditions, like the weather and the slide show, I think that a group of students handled it marvelously. 

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