On the morning of Wednesday, November 14, the Vipers freshmen gathered in the Dining Room for the Linksgiving breakfast. Sponsored by the Link Crew Board, this beloved NDB tradition has not happened for several years, and it was decided that it was time to bring it back.
Prior to the event, board members worked alongside Director of Student Life and Leadership Alisia Bergholm to organize the morning’s activities. Additionally, announcements and posters were made throughout the week, encouraging freshmen to attend.
“We had a few meetings to plan out writing letters for the freshmen and figuring out what else we wanted to do to carry out the theme of gratitude and thankfulness,” said senior and Link Crew Board member Ashley Turner. “I feel it was very important to bring the tradition of giving thanks to the Notre Dame community.”
When the day finally came, the Vipers arrived on campus in their red class color t-shirts promptly at 7:45 a.m. and were greeted by board members in the school dining room. The Epicurean Group organized a selection of breakfast foods, including bacon, French toast, fruit salad, tater tots and waffles. While the students enjoyed their meals, cards, envelopes and pens were passed around for a Linksgiving-themed activity. Once each freshman got their card, they were told they could write a letter to their future selves.
“It was really fun to hang out with my friends and just relax and talk with my friends,” said freshman Ellie Bojorquez. “It was nice to just eat breakfast with them and spend time together.”
Bergholm collected the letters after they were finished and, in return, gave each freshman a personalized card written by a member of the Link Crew Board. Messages inside the card were unique to each freshman recipient and ranged from “I am grateful to have you as an NDB sister” to “Thank you for working so hard on the volleyball team.”
“I think it was really important to recognize the work that everyone put in to host the event. All of the letters were so nice, and the music and food made the experience,” said freshman Katheryn Laing.
After an hour of writing letters and socializing together, the freshmen began their school day. In recognition of Thanksgiving, this event intended to unite the class before leaving for the upcoming holiday break and followed themes of community and gratitude that are familiar to this time of year.
