The St. Edward’s community came together once again for Hillfest on April 6 on Andre Lawn. Hillfest, an annual St. Edward’s tradition, brings the SEU community  together for a night of festivities, concluding with a firework show in front of Main Building. This year, it was celebrated during Family Weekend, which took place from April 5 to 7. 

The festival included carnival rides like swings, a fun slide, a mechanical bull and rock climbing. There were other enjoyable perks, including a variety of games, free t-shirts, a petting zoo, caricature artists and free airbrush tattoos done by artists from Reign Ink. Along with activities, there were various food options at Hillfest, including local food trucks, a drink station, funnel cakes, cotton candy and a popsicle bar. The festival also featured a live DJ that played upbeat music throughout the evening.

For those who are new to the hilltop, this was their first time participating in this beloved campus tradition. Given it is an on-campus event, some students were shocked at how different the festival was compared to what they had anticipated. Freshman Ashley Bocanegra gave her thoughts.

“My expectation, honestly, I was just thinking that it was gonna be like a really small event, kind of like the small culture events that have happened on campus,” Bocanegra said. “But this is huge, like everybody and their mom is here, literally.”

Hillfest has been a long-running St. Edward’s tradition that welcomes current students, prospective students, alumni and anyone in the Austin area to join in the celebration. Freshman Angelica Scheer expresses how she appreciates the traditional aspect and avid community participation of the festival.

”I’m a freshman that came from high school that was very rooted in tradition, but we didn’t have traditions as fun as this,” Scheer said. “So, I think for this to be a tradition is something wonderful and it’s part of parents weekend which makes it even more wonderful that we can share with our community too.”

Upperclassmen also had their fair share of attendance at Hillfest. Each year, Student Involvement strives to make Hillfest even more enjoyable for attendees and continue making Hillfest a success. Junior Heather Pitre explains that though the festival had some changes, those changes improved the flow and the overall atmosphere of the event.

“I think it’s been more fun this year, because in the past, they didn’t have as many activities, so it was more crowded,” Pitre said. “But with all the different activities they had this year, you don’t have to wait as long in the lines. I love it, and I think it’s important and it’s definitely something that I look forward to every year and I know a lot of other people do, because it’s just something fun.”