Riverland students who live in College Park housing hosted a special Thanksgiving dinner for their families Saturday evening in a cafeteria full of the smell of turkey, mashed potatoes and pie.

Monday, November 22, 1999

Riverland students who live in College Park housing hosted a special Thanksgiving dinner for their families Saturday evening in a cafeteria full of the smell of turkey, mashed potatoes and pie.

Close to 50 people came to enjoy the repast prepared by the students, from peeling 80 lbs. of potatoes to serving the line of parents who came through the cafeteria.

"We were up until three in the morning getting ready for today," said Stacey Lengager, one of the students responsible for organizing the dinner.

"It was Bev Groh’s idea," noted Kim Jewison, another student organizer. "This is our first year organizing this type of thing."

Groh is the housing manager and sometimes surrogate mom to the residents in College Park, where she also lives.

The early planning stages took about a month, Jewison noted, as it took a little while to get responses back once the families were invited.

The whole day was devoted to the families, with coffee and rolls in the morning, free entrance for parents into the Riverland mens basketball home game, the dinner, and a skit performed after dinner.

Some of the parents even stayed with their children in College Park, others were set up in hotel rooms.

Amy Wagner, director of marketing and public relations for Riverland, noted that eight of the 14 Riverland mens basketball players live in College Park, so the housing group extended the invitation to all the players and their families.