Block party tackles Homecoming Week

Victory Vaquero kicks a football at one of the inflatable target games during the Homecoming Block Party Tuesday on the Chapel lawn on the Edinburg campus. The block party featured live music, free food and merchandise.
Draya Rios/THE RIDER

Vaquero pride flooded the Chapel lawn Tuesday as students gathered for the UTRGV’s Homecoming Block Party, the event that kicked off a week of homecoming celebrations.

Hosted by the Office of Student Activities, it featured free food, craft activities, a photobooth and live performances from local talent. Students were able to decorate their own Vaquero cowboy hats to match with event-exclusive shirts and bandanas.

“We want to put on a lot of events and create some tradition,” said Cristina Rodriguez, assistant director for Student Activities.

Rodriguez said the event is a way for students to relax, meet new people and show school spirit, with a few small incentives to bring everyone together under the sun.

“We love our novelties,” she said. “We love key things that students get to take with them. It’s really about building memories and networking with folks.”

Before the event officially started, the Chapel lawn was packed, with students lining up early to celebrate with cowboy hats and tacos.

“We came 15 minutes early, and the line was already starting,” said Eileen Silva, a biology freshman. “It’s very upbeat. We’re all very lively people from the [Rio Grande] Valley to the core.”

Emily Page, a nursing senior, said she especially enjoyed the creative side of the event.

Joshua Rocha, Student Activities staff, hands out beads and stickers for students to decorate their complementary hats during the Homecoming Block Party Tuesday on the Chapel lawn on the Edinburg campus. The hat decoration is a new tradition starting this year, according to a UTRGV Student Union Instagram post.
Draya Rios/THE RIDER

“I honestly love getting the hat and decorating it,” Page said. “It’s something to look forward to and, then, I get to use it at the games.”

Others said they enjoyed the variety of booths and the sense of community.

“It’s very inviting,” said Jocelyn Bautista, a nursing junior. “They’re supporting locally with the food trucks and the lemonade stand, so they’re giving back to the students as well as the community.”

Set up on the lawn was an inflatable football toss game, giving students the chance to win Vaquero bucket hats. All around the area were photo opportunities and an eager mascot, inviting students to take pictures to remember the afternoon.

The Homecoming Block Party was only the introduction to a week of events, including the Vaquero Games and Wrapping of the Letters.

Burning of the Letters will take place today at 7 p.m. in Lot E-16 outside the Fieldhouse on the Edinburg campus, and the Vaqueros will take on the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals at 7 p.m. Saturday in the Robert and Janet Vackar Stadium, in which students can participate in the Homecoming gameday experience.

“Our everlasting impression is that [students] are part of a nation,” Rodriguez said. “We want them to feel super excited to wear orange and support our university.”