Fresno State’s 49th Annual Vintage Days hosted a variety of events, attractions and vendors for community members, staff and alumni to experience, but many of the activities would not be possible without the participation of the school’s own student body. 

Student attendees and organizations shared their experiences with the festival

For Yailin Castillo, a student majoring in animal science, it was her first time experiencing the campus’ biggest festival of the year.

“I didn’t really think it was going to be my thing, but it was really cool and nice to experience it all and see everything on display,” Castillo said. 

Castillo enjoyed seeing campus clubs and organizations participating at the event. This year, the festival’s location shifted next to the Resnick Student Center, giving all who attended a full view of the vendors, clubs and organizations.

Not only is student participation found on the attendance side of the event, there are also many clubs and organizations from the campus that took part in the vending of food, art and other goods. 

Mira Patino, women’s rugby club president, used Vintage Days to not only fund the club but also bridge connections between fellow students and community members. 

“It’s a great fundraiser for us, and Fresno State has a lot of student organizations that are great,” Patino said. “We always come out and help each other and say, ‘Oh yeah, we’ll buy something from you, or we’ll trade with you.’”

The event’s new location beside the Resnick Student Union this year gave new visibility to some university clubs. 

Tarynn Abrahamson-Tvo, said they were previously located within the Phebe Conley Art Building during past years of Vintage Days. This location made it harder to showcase artists’ work because of the building’s surrounding hills and without the proper signage, it’d be easier to go unnoticed, according to Abrahamson-Tvo. 

“People come to Fresno State to support students, so I thought they might want to see some student art out here,” Abrahamson-Tvo said. 

The new change in scenery provides a more accessible viewpoint for many student artists.

Sophia Chapa, an art major, helped to represent the Ceramics Guild. This was the first time the club purchased a booth for Vintage Days, and the club enjoyed the experience the process had to offer. 

“We got a lot of support from the faculty. They were more than happy to accommodate us with pricing and setting up,” Chapa said. “It’s great seeing the customers come in and talk with us, even if they don’t end up buying anything.”

Kimberly Alfors, a student currently in pursuit of a master’s degree in speech pathology, similarly enjoyed the interactions she had while helping her family sell Croc charms during the event. 

“It is a business, but it’s also nice just communicating with people,” Alfors said. “At Vintage Days, there’s a lot of people, and there’s a lot of good stuff out here so that’s really nice.” 

Student involvement can be seen all throughout the event, even at the table running wristbands for many of the attractions at Vintage Days.

Keilani Mccray, student assistants associated with Student Involvement, helped to run the wristband table and found that the event has run smoothly, with hard work put in from everyone who made the event possible. 

“I think we’re bringing a lot of the community together. We’re seeing a lot of different people, a lot of different cosplayers, all types of stuff I haven’t even seen before,” Mccray said. “There is an amount of work, but being able to talk to all the different types of people makes up for it.”