The Memorial Union held the spring semester WelcomeFest on Wednesday. The event welcomed Iowa State students and businesses from the Ames area to visit different vendors and earn free merchandise.
“The first couple weeks of classes are so overwhelming for students that they might actually be in a headspace where they are ready to be like, ‘Hey, I want to explore Ames a little bit more,’ or they might be thinking about where they want to live next year,” Kristine Heflin, associate director of the Memorial Union, said. “So I really think it’s good timing for the WelcomeFest for all students.”
The line for the WelcomeFest Event wrapped around the Durham Great Hall, hosting many Iowa State students.
“There’s a lot of people, which I am really surprised about,” Briana Gould, a sophomore in apparel merchandising and design, said. “I did not think that there were going to be as many people here for this event, and they surprisingly have good stuff too,”
WelcomeFest held a wide variety of different businesses, programs, apartment residences and different Iowa State programs.
“I represent Copper Beech, which are town homes,” Harley Thomas, a realtor at Hunziker Realty, said. “We are here trying to show people that we’re open for 2025 housing. A lot of students do not know when our leasing starts so we are just trying to voice that out here today.”
The vendors at WelcomeFest promoted different aspects of their businesses or organizations and what they can offer students.
“We want to connect with students and let them know about credit unions and what we do,” Abbey Sprague, vice president of marketing at Members First Community Credit Union, said. “We are not-for-profit, a financial institution owned by the people that use our services. So we want to share that message and let students know that.”
WelcomeFest is held biannually throughout the Iowa State school year.
“The spring WelcomeFest is always a little bit smaller, usually about half the number of vendors compared to the fall. I am always looking for new vendors, new business and new people that want to get their information in front of students,” Heflin said. “And to have as many students come out as possible.”
Most vendors passed out free merchandise to all students, including coupons, clothing items, stickers and pins.
“I think it’s helpful to get students involved because there are a lot of opportunities here at WelcomeFest and there’s also a lot of coupons, which is nice,” Tierra Hauser, a sophomore in electrical engineering, said.
