Downtown Claremore got a fresh coat of paint Friday, Jan. 26, as Rogers State University student volunteers converged on Will Rogers Boulevard (Main Street) for the annual Paint the Town event in anticipation of RSU’s homecoming week.
Pain the Town is an annual homecoming week tradition of painting the windows of participating businesses in downtown Claremore with various Hillcat-themed motifs.
“This (Paint the Town) tradition always kicks off homecoming week at RSU,” said Travis Peck, RSU director of alumni engagement. “This is the fourth year for this event, and student and business engagement has been strong, with volunteers from 16 of our student organizations painting RSU and Hillcat-themed designs and images on the windows of many businesses downtown.”
Paint is provided by Spectrum Paint in Claremore, which co-sponsors this event with Claremore Main Street. Brushes and other supplies are provided by RSU’s Office of Student Affairs.
RSU’s President’s Leadership Class (PLC), Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), NEDA (National Eating Disorders Association) Campus Warriors, and RSU’s women’s soccer team were among those involved in the event.
“It’s great to be doing something to bring some of the Hill spirit to downtown Claremore,” said sophomore Delana King, women’s soccer team member. “Plus, this is something we thought would be fun for us to do together as a team.”
In addition to spreading Hillcat spirit, Paint the Town volunteers will be competing for top honors and prizes, with first place earning $200, second place earning $150, and third place earning $50 for their respective student organizations.
Windows will be judged based upon creativity, RSU spirit, overall appeal and artistry.
“All of the designs from ‘Paint the Town’ will be left on business windows until after homecoming, with a clean-up day scheduled by the end of the day Feb. 6,” Peck said.
For a complete list of homecoming week activities and events, visit www.rsu.edu/homecoming.