By Piper Rutherford | Staff Writer
As a Baylor staple, this year’s celebration of Christmas on Fifth will feature the traditional Christmas tree lighting, a performance from Christian rock band Relic, a drone show and more. The event will take place from 5 to 10 p.m. Thursday.
Dallas junior Luke Babler said the event first began in the 1960s, when members of Kappa Omega Tau saw a need for more Christmas spirit at Baylor and went to cut down a tree to light on campus.
“Whenever we partnered with Baylor, we were then able to make it a full Christmas on Fifth event,” Babler said. “Last year, we had upward of 10,000 people there, and this year, we’re expecting it to only grow, as long as the weather holds.”
The history of the event is familiar to Dallas junior Warren Peterie, who said he has been attending Christmas on Fifth his whole life.
“My uncle was a part of this event’s planning back in the ‘90s,” Peterie said. “This event brings people of all ages together, where you get to see old alumni coming back each year and the past that they bring with them.”
At this year’s celebration of Christmas on Fifth, Babler said there is a new embroidered sweatshirt, with all proceeds going toward Kappa Tau Omega’s philanthropy: Unbound Now.
“We thought it would be cool [to] show the history of this event through embroidery so that students can see how the shirts have evolved from years ago when it first began,” Babler said. “However, the paramount reason for this celebration is that all merchandise proceeds go to Unbound Waco, which is a nonprofit that fights sex trafficking to protect those who were recently freed.”
For those interested in supporting the cause, Babler said members of Kappa Omega Tau will be selling the sweatshirts from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday in front of Memorial, Fountain Mall and Penland and in the Bill Daniel Student Center. They are also accepting online orders.
Newport Beach, Calif., junior Tyler Kelly said he is most excited about the drone show, which will be replacing the fireworks.
“We are able to have the drone show at the event after this year’s homecoming celebration was canceled, as the drones were not used that day,” Kelly said.
Although this year’s Christmas celebration is early, Houston junior Carson Brian said it is the perfect opportunity for students to give themselves a break from the stress of finals season.
“It’s a nice boost during the final season and helps get everybody in the Christmas spirit for the rest of December,” Brian said.
Babler said the event is also a good reminder about what the holiday season is for.
“The reason for the season is Christ’s birth, and in terms of the Christmas spirit, the purpose for this event is essentially to raise money for our philanthropy by giving back to those in need,” Babler said.
