Students from Washington University in St. Louis are gearing up for the annual Thurtene Carnival, and they plan community events this weekend to help bring neighbors together to share in the fun.
The Thurtene Junior Honorary will host a neighborhood block party and barbecue, basketball clinics for area youth and a 3-on-3 tournament.
The goal of the weekend events is to bridge the gap between WUSTL and its surrounding neighbors along with providing fun-filled events for the entire St. Louis community, explained Thurtene public relations co-chair Dara Baker, a junior majoring in psychology.
These events will help benefit and promote the local charity that Thurtene is partnering with this year, Provident. Provident, one of the region’s oldest family service nonprofit agencies, provides a number of community programs, from after-school activities and character building for youth to a suicide prevention and crisis hotline.
The Thurtene carnival will be on WUSTL’s campus, on Brookings Drive, from April 19-21. At the carnival, families can check out the elaborate facades that campus student groups have spent months planning, constructing and decorating. Inside the structures, guests can enjoy plays. This year’s carnival theme is “Stay Enchanted.”
Thurtene is the oldest and largest student-run carnival in the nation, dating back to 1907, and is led by 13 juniors chosen for the honorary society based on their leadership, character and campus involvement.
Schedule details:
1 – 3 p.m. Saturday, March 23: Block party, corner of Melville Avenue and Kingsbury Boulevard, with food and games
11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Sunday, March 24: Hoops Day. Thurtene will hold basketball clinics for area youth, as well as a 3-on-3 basketball tournament, at the Athletic Complex.
For more information or to sign up for the tournament, visit www.thurtene.org.