Green or get pinched; reflections on St. Patrick’s Day
The Centralized Student Assistance office is decked out in green to commemorate St. Patrick’s Day.
A snap survey by MCOM 302 students at CSA this morning, found that gifts of flowers and pens were being churned out.
Emory & Henry College Registrar, Mary Ragland, who was among those interviewed in the snap survey said St. Patrick’s Day has sentimental value for her. She said her father was “a big celebrator” of St. Patrick’s Day and she celebrates the day by wearing green.
The survey also showed that knowledge on the meaning and significance of St. Patrick’s Day among the college community was mixed. When asked what St. Patrick’s Day meant to him, Emory & Henry junior, Hunter Romano, said: “St. Patty Day doesn’t really mean anything to me.”
For Robin Grossman, the day symbolizes a celebration of Irish heritage. “I think here in Southwest Virginia there’re a lot of people who have Irish heritage,” Grossman added.
As regards the question of how people around campus were celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, green was the theme that weaved through most of their responses.
“You can see I pulled out my bright green shirt today, so no pinching me,” Grossman said.
Hunter said he was going to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by drinking “green beers.”
Kelli Smith, however, is not a fan of green on St. Patrick’s Day. “My grandma always tells us not to wear green on St. Patrick’s Day. That we should wear orange because we’re protestant,” Smith said.
Historically, St. Patrick’s Day traces its roots in Catholicism. St. Patrick’s Day, which falls on March 17, is the day when British-born Patrick who was taken into slavery in Ireland at age 16, died.
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