Purple and gold balloon arches and candy decorations adorned walkways by the tower esplanade last Friday, Feb. 16, as a line began to form an hour and fifteen minutes before the event started. Chocolate Fest draws students in every year, but only some student organizations have the funding to participate.
Sponsored by the Student Programming Board (SPB), Chocolate Fest serves as an opportunity for students to promote their clubs and give out chocolate along the way. Melissa Rosario, junior history major and SPB co-president, wanted to use Chocolate Fest to connect students and their organizations.
“Our goal is to make it as fun as possible, having organizations table and taking the stress out of planning it for the student organizations and give them the space to give out treats,” Rosario said.
This year, Chocolate Fest merchandise ran out 12 minutes into the event, and about 45 minutes after the start organizations started packing up their booths. Rosario mentioned that SPB hopes to limit this issue in the future.
“It’s so fast-paced that it can’t go for as long as we want it to,” Rosario said. “Which shows us that people love it, and [SPB is] making strides for it to be better and bigger each year.”
Chocolate Fest can be a way for established organizations to connect with students, but it’s also a way for newer organizations to promote themselves with the Trinity community. Ryann Moos, junior sociology major and Active Minds president, saw Chocolate Fest as an opportunity to make her organization’s presence known on campus.
“We’re a newer club on campus, so we thought Chocolate Fest would be a great place for students to get to know us a little better and get an idea of what our club stands for,” Moos said.
Chocolate Fest is a long-lasting tradition on campus, but not every organization can participate. Because of new on-campus events, SPB has limitations on the amount of funding they can provide student organizations with. Gemma Prince, sophomore psychology major and Swing Bums social chair, couldn’t participate in Chocolate Fest due to a lack of funding.
“For Trinity to promote Chocolate Fest so much, and make such a big deal out of it, and then not give the clubs any funding for it and make us take it out of our own account is just a bit demotivating,” Prince said. “We have members who are willing to go and make the things. It’s just about the funding.”
Starting in 2003, Chocolate Fest began as a way to raise money for the San Antonio Food Bank and the Boys & Girls Club. As the campus has grown, so has student involvement. This year, participation grew from 42 organizations in 2023 to 45.
This year, the winning organizations were the Trinity Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) Club for their chocolate dice and the Trinity University Players (TUPS) for their chocolate doors. They each received a $100 gift card for their organizations to La Panaderia, a local bakery. With a range of possibilities for treats, there seems to be a division between Chocolate Fest expectations and reality.
“There aren’t any guidelines as to what chocolate you can serve. It doesn’t have to be perfectly crafted artisan chocolate,” Rosario said. “It can be a small club initiative where you can give out whatever you think the student community wants and represents your club.”
Throughout the past week, student organizations were carefully making their Chocolate Fest treats to share with the Trinity community. Kai Velasquez, junior urban studies major and Bee Club president, made 200 treats with fellow Bee Club members, and there were some left over.
“It took us five hours between me and my other officer. We made chocolate-covered Oreos that look like bees. It was really rewarding to have everyone say, ‘Oh my gosh, bees, that’s super cute,’” Velasquez said.
As Chocolate Fest goes on, the purpose of the event stays the same. Rosario emphasized that Chocolate Fest’s main goal is to promote sharing and connection within the community.
“We don’t want [Chocolate Fest] to seem for orgs that have this huge amount of funding or that need to have this extravagant version of chocolate. The point of Chocolate Fest is just for you to share chocolates and share treats. So its just however you want it to be,” Rosario said.
