Correction: The Office of Federal Relations planned the first-come, first-serve ticket booth with the aid of CSLEPS and Student Government volunteers.
The Brickyard has never been so quiet while holding so many students at once. Thousands of students brought out sleeping bags and makeshift mattresses to last them through the night in hopes of acquiring a ticket to witness President Barack Obama’s visit to campus Wednesday at noon.
Upon receiving an email from Student Body President Chandler Thompson, a lot of hearsay and no official announcement of a camp out, like-minded students eager to see Obama decided to get a head start on getting in line for tickets.
The The Office of Federal Relations planned on setting up a first-come-first-serve ticket booth for students interested in seeing the Wednesday event at Reynolds Coliseum, with help from CSLEPS and Student Government volunteers. The proposed set-up time of the booth was 7:15 a.m . and tickets would be distributed starting at 8 a.m .
However, some students did not plan to wait until then.
“We went to the library at 10:45. Then at 11, we thought, ‘we should probably claim a spot,'” Elisabeth Webster, a freshman in chemistry, said. “I heard everyone talking about it.”
Some students began setting up their tents in the Brickyard as early as 9 p.m . Monday. The small congregation forming outside D.H . Hill Library was what caught the attention of students like Lindsey Barnes, a freshman in chemical engineering, who then decided to spend the night in the Brickyard as well.
“If there’s the chance to see the president talk… I figured I’d be a part of history,” Barnes said. “This is definitely something you won’t forget: freshman year, I camped out and got tickets to see the President,” Barnes said. “[…That’s] not something you do every day.”
Despite the pain of sleeping on bricks — or for some, not sleeping at all — students unanimously decided to sacrifice comfort for what will be a historical moment for the University.
According to Webster, “you might as well go big or go home.”
