Campus, community come together for BBQ

Students from UNC and the Greeley community gathered at the Cesar Chavez Cultural Center Thursday afternoon to enjoy food prepared by the brothers of the Sigma Lambda Beta Fraternity and to listen to music provided by UNC Student Radio.

The Cesar Chavez Cultural Center and the Sigma Lambda Beta Fraternity International Inc. joined to host the annual Welcome- Back Barbeque to join groups from the school, welcome students back to campus, and make their presence known with a surefire way to any student’s heart: free food.

 “I really like food; they did a nice job,” said Enrique Hernandez, a junior at Greeley Central High School. “It’s a great event.”

The Cesar Chavez Cultural Center opened in 1985 to provide Latino students with a place for support and give any student a chance to learn about Latin culture.

Among the barbeque attendees were senior Katherine Janssen, a Spanish major, and Denise Romero, a freshman business major, who are both CCCC representatives. They said the barbeque was a good event because it brought together clubs and Greek chapters from UNC and allows their presence be known when students are getting back to school.

“It’s a big happy family,” Romero said.

According to Janssen, one of the greatest advantages to being part of a cultural center like the CCCC is getting to know people and forming long-term bonds.

“The Cultural Center is a huge sense of community,” she said. “It’s like a home away from home.”

The Sigma Lambda Beta fraternity strives to “enhance cultural wisdom,” as its webpage explains.

“The fraternity has contributed to the overall success of Latinos in higher education through scholarships and academic excellence,” the website says of the international fraternity’s mission and work.

The brothers could be seen in their club letters both manning the grill and milling about the crowd with representatives of the center.

Students were asked to fill out surveys for the center while they waited for their free food. They also had the opportunity to register to vote in  the upcoming election at a table on the edge of the crowd. As people ate, they were addressed by some of the senior staff of the center, who acknowledged there were some familiar faces among the dinner guests and invited both them and the newcomers to enjoy their meal and use the center throughout the year.

“I just want to give you all a big hug and a thank you for attending this event!” said Trish Escobar, the CCCC director.

For more information about the Cesar Chavez Cultural Center and to find a calendar of events, visit unco.edu/cccc.