Friday, November 02, 2007
KE hosts Light in the Night for local kids
For the thirteenth time on the thirty-first of October, families of the community and KE residents gathered at Knollcrest East to celebrate Halloween through safe trick-or-treating, fun, and fellowship.
Through KE’s annual program “Light in the Night”, hundreds of children—ranging in age, ethnicity, and creativity in costume—joyfully trampled through the hallways of KE on a rainy night, imagining for a few moments they were in a fairy tale, Neverland, a barnyard, or the ocean with Nemo. Andrea Timmerman, Community Life Coordinator of KE, says that “Light in the Night is a great opportunity to reach out with a welcoming hand to our community.”
Resonating with that goal, Zeta’s RA Kwabena Bediako stated that “it’s a chance for the families to get together. We’re showing the community that KE is here and we’re open.”
Matt Sowash, a member of the Programming Activities Council, also shared his thoughts on the immense preparation and creativity the residents of KE shared to provide a safe space for people from the community, saying, “It’s great to see the apartment doors being decorated and watching residents coordinate their plans with others! There has been a buzz among students working to get the building decorated. The amount of people taking time out of their busy schedules and helping is just fantastic!”
The excitement is shared at both ends. As a lifelong resident of Grand Rapids, Kimmy DeVries looks back on her annual trick-or-treating experience, saying, “I remember coming here as a kid to trick-or-treat; it was super fun! I was awestruck with all those college kids living on their own. It’s cool to be on the other side passing out the candy, remembering how much fun I had.” The effect Light in the Night has on the residents was also described by Theta’s RA, Abby Skeans, who said, “It was a lot of work, but a big payoff. We’re reaching a lot of kids at one time; it’s really impactful to me.”
Families of the community were grateful for the opportunity, as described by George Jeffries, a staff member of Inner City Christian Federation (ICCF), a Grand Rapids based nonprofit housing corporation. Jeffries stated that the families attending were so excited to be trick-or-treating at KE on Wednesday night, simply adding, “they may not have otherwise had an opportunity to go out and do this.” He also described his desire to continue cooperating with Calvin College students in order to carry on the various programs they have shared in years past.
Yet there is an even deeper purpose beyond the goal of providing a safe space for community families to trick-or-treat. Timmerman says that the title, and purpose, of the program emerged from John 8:12: “I am the Light of the World. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” Timmerman says that on Halloween, KE lit up the night “with hundreds of candles, [doing] our best to represent Christ as we open[ed] our doors.”