By Robert Vater
At 6 a.m. on Thursday, May 6, most college students were still trying to get a few more hours of sleep before classes. But members of the Fitchburg Activities Board were already awake and piling into the Recreation Center.
This was the day of the New Found Glory and We the Kings concert on campus. Members of FAB and numerous other volunteers from Greek Life, Housing and Residential Services, and the Student Development office would put in over 19 hours of work for one of the biggest events the school had seen.
“Thank you and congratulations on an amazing night!” is how Director of Student Development Hank Parkinson ended the long day for the concert volunteers. The concert could not have been as successful without the nearly 100 volunteers and staff members involved.
“Security just performed so well!” agreed Chris Rymer and Sam Morin, two students who headed up the security effort for the concert. Rymer and Morin had been working toward this night since October 2009, along with the rest of FAB’s concert committee. They had 45 to 50 student security members covering everything from general building security to working the pit and breaking apart crowd surfers and mosh pits. They said they owed special thanks to the fraternities for stepping up to help.
Student volunteers also worked alongside the professional staff to set up and take down all the lighting and sound equipment, along with building the stage. Dan Saldarini of Pretty Polly Productions said that with the help of the volunteers, the takedown was “like the world land speed record.” To Dave McKellar, FAB’s music chair and head of the concert, he said, “Congratulations! It was a great show and everyone who helped was awesome!”
Both bands and professional staff also thanked all the student help they received. The show went flawlessly and over 800 people showed. The crowd loved the show, getting very into the music, everyone singing along and rocking out in their own ways.
After more than six months of preparation by FAB’s concert committee, there is only one question left to be asked: Who will they bring next year?
If you want to be a part of this decision, you can take part in surveys this fall; you can also contact McKellar via the Facebook event “What do you want to see for music next year?” at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=113556625351127&ref=ts