Throughout the year, each residence hall will host its own respective Laker Night for the campus and its students. Johnson Hall started these Laker Nights off with a bang with its lively Casino Night on Oct. 8.
Justin Dickerson, the hall director of Johnson Hall, explained that Casino Night was a collaboration between the Johnson Hall staff and Dining Services as the large-scale event was hosted during the usual hours of late night in Lakeside Dining Hall. The Oswego Jazz Ensemble also made an appearance, serving as entertainment for the night.
During the event, students would swipe in with their meal plan and be given a bag of tokens that served as “money” to play games with. If students won games, they would receive more tokens, if they lost, they would lose tokens. The available games included bingo, blackjack, roulette, texas hold’em and the money wheel, or the wheel of fortune.
With their winnings, students could trade their tokens for tickets to enter a prize raffle. Johnson Hall provided a number of prizes for students to win at Casino Night, and the winners were announced at the end of the event.
Lakeside Dining Hall also provided a “special menu of light appetizers” for students to enjoy while playing games, talking to friends and listening to the music.
Johnson Hall Resident Mentor Richard Pirong said that Casino Night was made to be a place for students and residents to have fun and hang out with friends in a safe space.
“Our goal was to create an environment where all students were able to enjoy a night with friends in a safe and comfortable way,” Pirong said.
Dickerson agreed with Pirong and said how Casino Night provided students with a safe way to have fun and hang out with friends on a weekend.
“The true goal of Casino Night was to show students that on a Friday night they can have fun and stay safe, right here on our campus,” Dickerson said. “Casino Night was a large-scale program designed to encourage students to socialize positively within their own residence community.”
Dickerson considered Johnson Hall’s Laker Night to be a tremendous success, as over 250 students attended. This success, according to Dickerson and Pirong, can be attributed to the efforts and work done by the Johnson Hall Staff, Johnson Hall’s resident mentors.
Both Dickerson and Pirong commented on the hard work of the Johnson Hall resident mentor staff, explaining that the success of their Laker Night relied heavily on this staff’s dedication and effort.
“Casino Night was a huge success and relied on the hard work of the Johnson Hall resident mentor staff, each of whom contributed many hours to the planning, preparation and implementation of this incredible event,” Dickerson said. “I couldn’t be prouder of their hard work.”
Pirong said the Johnson Hall staff has a family-like bond and expressed his pride in being a part of the group.
“Johnson Hall’s Laker Night was a testament to the strength and the determination of the [resident mentor] staff here in Johnson Hall,” Pirong said. “We are truly a family here in Johnson Hall and Laker Night allowed us to unite the campus and spread hope during this time. We are forever JO!”
Kailee Montross | The Oswegonian
