Another year at Edmonds Community College is coming to a close, which means a few things; many Tritons will be graduating and saying goodbye, for others it’s time to enroll in Summer and/or Fall classes, but most importantly: Springfest!

Springfest is the annual mini-carnival held in the Lynnwood Courtyard every May, and this year’s was held on May 24. The event is open to anyone who would like to attend, not just EdCC students and staff. Every year brings exciting new experiences and attendees can always expect free food.

It is an unwritten rule that a carnival offers food, and Springfest always delivers in that area. Cotton candy and snow cones are available on demand, provided that the cotton candy machine doesn’t start smoking and the snow cone machine doesn’t run out of ice, which does happen on occasion due to the popularity of those treats. A donut cart was a new addition this year. The length of the lines fluctuated, as one got bigger, the others got shorter, so you were almost always able to get one of the three snacks at any given time.

Savory foods were also available. This year’s menu included soft pretzels, chicken, as well as cinnamon chips. In order to be served, attendees had to fill up a sheet with stamps from the various booths found at the event.

Different organizations, EdCC affiliated or not, are able to reserve tables and advertise their services and programs to those who attend. This gives students and other community members the opportunity to see the variety of resources available to them on campus that they may not already know exist. Additionally, businesses such as Costco come to advertise the discounts they offer to students. If you spared a few moments to talk to them, occasionally participating in a short activity, you would receive a stamp on your sheet.

There were quite a few activities to get you through the sugar rush from all that snack food. The main attractions included an inflatable maze, a rock climbing wall, jousting and a dunk tank. As always, Dennis Denman, Associate Director for Student Engagement and Leadership, was the life of the party. He manned the dunk tank for quite some time, bantering with the dunkers and those being dunked a-like. Naturally, it wasn’t long before a crowd formed, some people were up for the challenge of hitting the target, but most were there to spectate.

For those who just felt like chilling, they could listen to and watch the live performances on the stage, or even perform themselves! Towards the end of the event, half of the attendees began dancing together in sync. A bonding of their shared identities as Tritons.

Overall, Springfest was a great way to relax amidst the upcoming finals and graduation, and a free event to hang out with your friends, assuming you managed not to declare one another mortal enemies after a heated round of jousting.