Programming for Recreation Services, RC380, at Southeast Missouri State University will host its annual springtime celebration called “Fun in the Southeast Sun,” which will take place from 3 to 6 p.m. on Thursday, April 20, at Parker Field.

Fun in the Southeast Sun is free to students and will feature activities like KnockerBall, a dunk tank and an inflatable obstacle course as well as classic backyard games.

Students put together a project like Fun in the Southeast Sun every year as part of the RC 380 class requirements. Because RC 380 is only offered in the spring, the event takes place once a year.

The students of RC 380 have been working since the first day of class to put the event together. They split up into subcommittees that focused on certain areas of the project.

Members of the marketing committee, Scott Collins, Olesya Stadnichuk and Allison Kiesewetter, promoted the event on social media and gathered donations from local businesses and campus organizations at Southeast.

“We got some funding from Student Government for the bigger things like food,” Collins said. “We’ve been trying to [keep costs] as cheap as possible so everything is free for every student that comes.”

Stadnichuk said the Show Me Gold program also will be providing food, as well as the inflatables and the equipment for KnockerBall.

The students worked all semester to plan every detail of the event, including a backup location for unpredictable weather. Kiesewetter said in case of bad weather on April 20, activities will move inside to Parker Gym.

Kiesewetter said a large part of their grade in RC 380 depends on how many people attend the event and she encouraged students to bring their friends.

The event will take place just a few weeks before final exams begin. The students organizing Fun in the Southeast Sun hope that it can provide stress relief.

“We really want to bring everyone together, relieve some stress and get outside,” Collins said.

For more information about Fun in the Southeast Sun, contact the Department of Health, Human Performance and Recreation at Southeast or check out the Facebook event at https://www.facebook.com/events/1267244360012026/.