The hallways from Knox Hall to the Natural Science Complex were more crowded than usual this past Thursday as part of the Student Association's "Love Your SA Day" celebration.
A majority of the participating SA clubs lined the walkways of the Spine with tables decorated with club banners, condoms and candy in order to promote their clubs.
"Love your SA day is a day to showcase all the clubs we have at UB, and today about two-thirds of our clubs showed up," said Ashish Abraham, SA vice president. "I think we had a very good turnout. I feel like everyone should be involved in clubs, since you pay the mandatory activity fee in your tuition. Joining a club is a great way to get involved, meet new people and really make the most of your college experience."
This year, many clubs focused on raising awareness of sexual health issues.
"We are fundraising and promoting for our club today but we are also trying to raise safe sex awareness. We have pamphlets with information about different kinds of prevention and condoms," said Aliberth Valdez, a junior civil engineering major and member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers.
"We have the condoms and the pamphlets so no one has any accidents on Valentine's Day," joked Marko Djuric, a computer engineering major and fellow member of SHPE.
UB's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Alliance (LGBTA) raised awareness about HIV/AIDS and LGBTA support.
"It's not just about being gay or lesbian - it's about diversity, not just sexual orientation. We want to promote diversity and make a comfort zone for those who are afraid to speak out," said Juan Pereyra, a freshman nursing major.
Other groups entertained students as they walked to and from classes. The Gymnastics Club performed back flips, handstands and cartwheels in Knox Hall for a donation of 50 cents per trick from students.
"For us, Love Your SA Day was a success. We are trying to raise money to travel to our national championship in North Carolina and we made over twenty bucks doing handstands," said Nathan Brandwein, a junior media studies and psychology major and member of the club.
Another club at the event was UB's chapter of Circle K, a worldwide community service club and volunteer organization.
"We want to make people more aware of community service. We are co-sponsoring Relay for Life this year, but we regularly work with local soups kitchens, Ronald McDonald House, Habitat for Humanity and Weinberg Campus, a nursing home near Ellicott," said Shana Sessler, Circle K president and senior electrical engineering major.
Although the location in the hallways was a little cramped, club members thought the location was better than the Student Union lobby.
"[The Union] would have been chaos with the number of clubs here today," said Tierra Odum, a freshman psychology major and member of the UB Step Troupe.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
