Students gathered on the Great Lawn this Sunday afternoon to enjoy the first annual St. Thomas More Carnival, hosted by Campus Ministry, Red Zone and Student Affairs. The event was held in conjunction with Red Remembers, a program dedicated to honoring the lives lost in the terror attacks on 9/11.

The carnival offered festivities such as wandering performers and classic fair foods ranging from cotton candy to funnel cake. Attendees could also try their luck at winning prizes at multiple game booths, which proved to be quite popular with the longer lines.

Multiple campus organizations, including Habitat for Humanity, Catholic Student Community and Sinai’s Radiant Liturgical Dance Ministry, presented booths at the carnival to share their mission and recruit attendees.

Sophomore Alicia Guzman enjoyed her experience at the carnival, most notably with the organizations present. “I really liked it because it shows us what other organizations are on campus and what Campus Ministry has to offer,” Guzman said.

The Saint Thomas More Carnival was the first of its kind, replacing the tailgates that Campus Ministry has traditionally done in past years.

“We wanted to make it a little more fun and interactive,” said Victoria O’Keefe, a St John’s grad student and an advisor for Habitat for Humanity. “This year we’re having a carnival to make it a little easier for people to introduce themselves and sign up for student organizations.”

The carnival was also a part of Red Remembers, a daylong program in remembrance of the victims of the World Trade Center attacks. The end of the carnival was followed by a student mass and a ceremony in Belson Stadium to commemorate the fifteen year anniversary of 9/11.

These events were then followed by the men’s soccer game against Holy Cross, where fans received commemorative shirts and free desserts to end the long and eventful day.