Block Darty cut short by weather, spirit stayed strong

At 4 p.m. on Friday, students got a mass text: Block Darty was cancelled due to weather conditions.  

Before the rain fell, students spread out across the Quad, soaking up one of the warmest days of the year. They lounged on the lawn with Toss & Fire slices and Skippy’s cones in hand, stood in line for palm readings and picked up free T-shirts. With live music, bouncy castles and clear skies for most of the afternoon, the third annual Block Darty, organized by University Union, still made its mark on the campus community. 

Photo by Alicia Hoppes

The Block Darty event, held on the Shaw Quad, hosted were many featured vendors, including a custom airbrush hat booth.

Catie Scott, Megan Radakovich, and Zoe Colman, Syracuse University juniors, say the school could do a better job of bringing students together. While the trio doesn’t typically attend on-campus events, Block Darty is a tradition for them. “They really hit the nail on the head with this one every year,” said Scott. “If there’s one thing that brings people together, it’s free stuff. Free stuff and warm weather.” 

Later that night, Latto and Role Model headlined Block Party. But earlier in the day, Block Darty had its own stage, giving a platform to rising artists: Sun Room, Alex Vaughn, and SU junior and student performer, Padma. 

Photo by Alicia Hoppes

Padma is a Syracuse student who uses music production, which began as a pandemic hobby, as a form of self-expression.

Talia St. Angelo discovered one of her favorite artists at Block Darty last year. “Last year I came and renforshort played, and now I’m obsessed,” said St. Angelo. “Now she’s playing at music festivals.” The event is about nurturing smaller talent, said Lachlan Sartison, assistant PR director at University Union. “You look at artists in the past that have gone to [Block Darty], they turned out to be nothing but special.” 

Photo by Alicia Hoppes

Alex Vaughn, featured Block Darty R&B artist, shares her talent and love for music with Syracuse University students. Vaughn played a variety of covers and original songs.

With the exception of events in the Dome, student employee Vrushabh Shah said he’s never worked a busier event. Still, he’d take this over a dining hall shift any day. “This is an open place, so you can work more energetically, rather than in a closed room,” said Shah. Many of his friends are here and, if he wasn’t working, he said he’d be in attendance, too. “Who would miss this?”

Emma Koerner and Sehui Yoo met in the fall at an on-campus ice cream social for freshmen. In a line at Block Darty, they met roommates Lauren Steinberg and Mekoya Sandback. All four chose Syracuse, in part, because they believed its active campus would help them form friendships. So far, they were right. 

Photo by Alicia Hoppes

Block Darty brings the fun with life-sized Connect 4.

Meanwhile, Lauren Wiertel and Rajan Joshi had never been to Block Darty. They felt the event was an important thing to experience before graduation. “We’re seniors,” said Wiertel. It’s our last year, we wanted to come see it.” The freebies didn’t hurt, either. 

University Union puts on campus events all year, and Friday was their biggest. Block Party and Darty shows how the organization creates community across all class years. Beyond fun, it gives its student volunteers real-life experience working in entertainment across various fields. “We, as an organization, really preach student engagement and getting involved on campus,” said Sartison. He hopes this will inspire more students to join the club. 

The Quad emptied an hour earlier than expected, but Block Darty delivered on its promise: a day of music, connection, and community. Days like these make the campus feel like home.