The Office of Commuter Life hosted a Valentine’s Day Stuff-A-Plush event on Feb. 1 in the Student Center Ballrooms to help fill students’ week with love.
The event involved making plushies along with Valentine’s Day cards to help commuter students feel at ease before leaving campus for the day.
Students create Valentine’s Day plushies.
Karsten Englander | The Montclarion
The Office of Commuter Life hosts events involving artistic and creative activities for commuters to participate in. They also plan Commuter Life Appreciation Week (CLAW) each semester to provide fun activities for commuters outside of classes on campus.
Students also had the opportunity to make Valentine’s Day cards.
Karsten Englander | The Montclarion
For this event, students gathered at tables set with the necessary supplies to make plushies and Valentine’s Day cards for their significant others, friends and loved ones.
Zoe Suwanprutsachati, a freshman communication and media studies major, came to the event to make a gift for her boyfriend.
“I was drawn to the Valentine’s Day event because of the adorable bear image in the email I was sent from Commuter News,” Suwanprutsachati said. “I had originally planned to give a bear to my boyfriend, but a heart works just as well.”
The plushies had several different messages on them.
Karsten Englander | The Montclarion
Brianna Badolato, a freshman film and television major, shared what she enjoyed about the event.
“The Stuff-A-Plush commuter event was really fun, cute and creative,” Badolato said. “It was really easy to create stuff, and you got to leave with an adorable pillow that looked like the sweetheart candy. It was nice that they had so many different options and cute colors.”
Brianna Badolato, a freshman film and television major, makes a pillow.
Karsten Englander | The Montclarion
For Alejandra Arevalo, a freshman psychology major, events like this make her feel more involved.
“I always feel involved even though I do not live on campus,” Arevalo said. “I appreciate that [Montclair State] always finds ways to include commuters and make them feel at home by having fun on campus. The [Montclair State] commuter experience has been great, and I am looking forward to the next couple of years.”
Kaitlyn Marques, a freshman psychology major, shared a similar sentiment.
“As a commuter, you never feel as if you’ll get the full college experience,” Marques said. “But, with an amazing group of graduates and undergrads at [Montclair State], they make commuter life more special and fun for commuters with all these activities.”
Students made heart-shaped plushies at the event.
Karsten Englander | The Montclarion
Resh Dasrat, a junior public health major, said Commuter Life events make her day better.
“When I’m having a stressful day and see Commuter Life is hosting an event, I look forward to it,” Dasrat said. “It makes you happy and changes your mood.”
Resh Dasrat, a junior public health major, and Kaylee Prieto, a junior accounting major, at the Stuff-A-Plush event.
Karsten Englander | The Montclarion
Kaylee Prieto, a junior accounting major, shared why she goes to Commuter Life events.
“I like these events,” Prieto said. “It’s nice to spend some time away from academics for a little and focus on doing fun activities.”
Yamile Perez, Antonio Talamo and Maddison Chin, Commuter Life staff
Karsten Englander | The Montclarion
Yamile Perez, the graduate coordinator for Commuter Life, explained the organization’s mission.
“We serve commuters, making the Montclair State campus their home,” Perez said.
Antonio Talamo, coordinator of the Office of Commuter Life.
Karsten Englander | The Montclarion
Antonio Talamo, the head coordinator for Commuter Life, also gave his input on what the organization means to him.
“I think it’s important being visible to commuters and acknowledging that we see them, [that] we see their responsibilities for coming here every day,” Talamo said. “Since we’ve started rebranding, more commuters are coming to our events and feel welcomed.”
