Christmas on Campus is an annual event at the University of Dayton

University of Dayton

The University of Dayton is a private Roman Catholic university operated by the Society of Mary located in Dayton, Ohio...

 in which children are invited to campus to celebrate the Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

 holiday. It has become one of the nation's largest single-day, on-campus community service events. University students "adopt" area children and treat them to seasonal shows, displays and food. The event is held on December 8 each year, the same day as the Feast of the Immaculate Conception

Feast of the Immaculate Conception

The Feast of the Immaculate Conception celebrates belief in the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is celebrated on 8 December, nine months before the Nativity of Mary, which is celebrated on 8 September. It is the patronal feast day of the United States and the Republic of the...

. It is one of the largest events hosted by the University of Dayton, and has a student organization devoted to preparing and running the event. It is considered by some to be an integral part of the campus' spirit.

History

The roots of Christmas on Campus can be traced to 1962, when an event called Operation Joy was held in which 60 children between the ages of 4 and 12 were brought to campus as part of a Christmas party hosted by the senior class. In 1963, the first event referred to as Christmas on Campus was held. However, it was meant as a celebration for students before the beginning of Christmas break, and did not include inviting children. These two events were combined in 1966, when children were invited to attend Christmas on Campus. There were 275 children at the 1966 inauguration of the event in its current form.

On Jan. 16, 2009, the founder of Christmas on Campus, Eleanor "Ellie" Ann Kurtz, died at age 82. Kurtz ran the event every year until 1994, and missed it only twice, including in 2008, due to poor health. Dayton Daily News. "Founder of UD's Christmas on Campus dies." January 21, 2009. http://www.daytondailynews.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2009/01/21/ddn012109kurtzobitweb.html

Current event

Work on the event is divided into 10 committees, each with different duties to prepare for all aspects of the event. These committees, and their responsibilities, are:

• Adoptions Committee — Bringing children to the event; pairing children with adopted students
• Carnival Committee — Coordinating other student organizations to run events as part of Christmas on Campus
• Decorations Committee — Producing and placing ornamentation on campus
• Entertainment Committee — Hiring and coordinating professional acts
• Mass Committee — Coordinating and preparing the UD chapel for mass
• Plaza/Outdoor Decorations Committee — Selecting and decorating a large Christmas tree
  Christmas tree
  The Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen coniferous tree, real or artificial, and a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century...
  
  
• Publicity Committee — Spreading the word about the event and planning kick-off day, held 30 days before the event
• Transportation Committee — Monitoring children during travel to and from campus; uniting children with their adoptive students
• Community Outreach Committee — Raising money and planning events for the other committees
• Hospitality Committee — Coordinating invitations, thank-you letters, and donations; producing and selling Christmas on Campus T-shirts

Christmas off Campus

Christmas off Campus is an alumni event created as an extension of the original Christmas on Campus. In 1990, through the work of Brian and Renai Lowry, the first Christmas off Campus was held by the University of Dayton's St. Louis alumni chapter

Alumni association

An alumni association is an association of graduates or, more broadly, of former students. In the United Kingdom and the United States, alumni of universities, colleges, schools , fraternities, and sororities often form groups with alumni from the same organisation...

. The event has now spread to many other chapters of the UD Alumni Association.

Many of the Christmas off Campus events emulate the experience of Christmas on Campus for the children involved. They also raise money for a variety of community organizations, such as the Ronald McDonald House Charities

Ronald McDonald House Charities

Ronald McDonald House Charities is an independent 501c3 organization whose mission is to create, find and support programs that directly improve the health and well being of children across the world...

, the Covenant House

Covenant House

Covenant House is the largest privately funded agency in the Americas providing shelter, food, immediate crisis care, and an array of other services to homeless, and runaway youth. In addition to basic needs, Covenant House provides a continuum of care to homeless youth aged 16–21 designed to...

, the Make-a-Wish Foundation

Make-A-Wish Foundation

The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501 non-profit organization founded in the United States that grants wishes to children who have life-threatening medical conditions. The charity now operates in forty-seven countries around the world through thirty-six affiliate offices.The president & CEO of this...

 and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Because of this work, Woman's Day

Woman's Day

Woman's Day is aimed at a female readership, covering such subjects as food, nutrition, fitness, beauty and fashion. The magazine edition is one of the "Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines....

magazine included Christmas off Campus as one of “31 fun activities to keep kids busy over the holidays” in 2004.

External links

• http://www.daytondailynews.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2009/01/21/ddn012109kurtzobitweb.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=16 "Founder of UD's Christmas on Campus dies" Dayton Daily News
• Christmas on Campus Web site
• 1989 New York Times Article on Christmas on Campus
• http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081207/LOCAL/812070463/-1/LOCAL11"University of Dayton alumni give to children" Fort Wayne, Indiana Journal Gazette
• http://www.anac.org/bulletin/archive/winter02/bul0212-2.html Associated New American Colleges at the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation 2002 Bulletin