The Pub at the Ehinger Center was host to plentiful desserts and catchy music as L’Association Francophone held their annual Mardi Gras event. Mardi Gras is a traditional event that dates back to pagan celebrations of spring and fertility. According to History.com, when Christianity arrived in Rome, religious leaders decided to incorporate these popular pagan traditions into the new faith. As a result, the Mardi Gras season became a prelude to Lent, the 40 days of fasting and penance between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday. In France, the day before Ash Wednesday came to be known as Mardi Gras, which translates to “Fat Tuesday.”
The board kicked off the event by welcoming everyone with beignets, king cake, vegetables, chips and mocktails. As students indulged in traditional foods, they also learned about the origin and traditions of Mardi Gras through a presentation by the board.
One of these traditions is the king’s cake scavenger hunt, where participants search for a small baby doll, also called la fève, hidden within one slice of the cake; the one who is lucky enough to find the baby in their cake is the king or queen for the day. They are also required to make the king’s cake the following year. Ollie Arnold (‘25) found the baby within his piece but left the event with it before anyone knew he had it.
As the presentation concluded, students prepared for a fun Kahoot about Mardi Gras. Lizzie Shack (’23), the Kahoot prize winner, emphasized, “It was such a good time, I liked it! The scavenger hunt [for the baby] was super clever, I won some macaroons. I loved being able to hang out with my friends at a reasonable hour.”
Everyone then participated in a raffle where two sets of macarons were the prize. The first person selected was Theodore Droar (‘24) and the second was Grace Aboussleman (‘23).
Tyler Schmied (‘25), the L’Association Francophone treasurer, said of the event: “The turnout was great! It was more than I expected. All in all a great event!”
Alex Edwing (’23), president of L’Association Francophone, concluded by saying, “I’m very happy with the turnout, it’s been the highest turnout all this year. I should’ve gotten more food, I was pleasantly surprised.”
L’Association Francophone is excited to bring more events to the Drew community this semester, so keep an eye out for this wonderful community and crew of people. For more information about upcoming events, follow them on their Instagram @drewfrenchclub.
Nicole is a sophomore majoring in international relations and minoring in French.
