As the holidays mark the end of the semester, Rowan University hosted its 12th annual Boro In Lights event on Rowan Boulevard.
The event was hosted on Dec. 5 and included a plethora of festive sights, sounds, food, and activities for all ages. The festivities were led by a personal visit from Santa Claus himself to light up the Christmas tree at the end of Rowan Boulevard.
Along the Rowan Boulevard, where the parallel-parked cars usually sit, was replaced with a plethora of food trucks, horse carriages, and even an inflatable obstacle course. Along with the trucks and carriages, there were booths that sold decorations and offered face painting.
The Director of Public Relations and Business Development at Glassboro and the host of Boro In Lights, Megan Varrell, spoke about the event and its importance for the town of Glassboro.
“It’s really to bring unity into the community and kick off the holiday season,” said Varrell. “It is an economic driver for our businesses, and community tourism is a big focus for us here in the borough. So this is just a testament of bringing people out to really experience downtown Glassboro being the premier community here in southwest New Jersey.”
Along with the Rowan Boulevard shops, the Welcome Center was open. Allowing people to enter to warm up from the cold outside. There were also some smaller activities, such as sand coloring, drawing, and Rowan’s own mascot, Whoo RU, dressed up as Santa Claus, taking pictures with the families that came inside to warm up.
One of the Rowan University Welcome Center employees and a Rowan student majoring in advertising and sports communication, Jillian Vincent, spoke about her favorite part of the event.
“I love meeting new people … when the holidays are around here, there’s a certain joy in the air that’s not here during the rest of the year,” said Vincent. “So being able to work here and spread that at the event, like being somebody that’s actually working the event, is a lot of fun and something I look forward to.”
For those who could not make it to the event, Vincent encourages community members to strive to come back for the event in 2026.
“It’s really the event that brings everybody together,” said Vincent. “So if they couldn’t have made it this year, they should definitely try next year because it’s a lot of fun.”
Santa Claus, throughout the event, took the time to take photos with the kids who came to enjoy the festivities. While Santa had his hands full the entire event listening to the wishes of children, he found the time to talk about what it meant to be a part of the event.
“It means a lot,” said Santa. “It’s togetherness. Everybody becoming one and cheery, happy. Every day of the year should be like that.”
While college finals are in full swing and creating a stressful time for Rowan students, the Boro In Lights event helped to bring some joy to the students and the rest of the Glassboro community.
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