Students huddled, kneeling eagerly on the grass surrounding Palomar College’s clock tower. Their hands reached out for a highly anticipated velvety tuft of fur from one of Love on a Leash’s therapy dogs. Sam, a Welsh corgi, sat up and waved a paw at the instructor on command.
Palomar hosted several student organizations, prizes, free gifts, and therapy dogs in the Student Union Quad in honor of Earth Day. Informational posters and colorful banners drew a crowd to the lawn. Occasionally, a student or two walked past the booths, holding a free succulent won at the tabling event.
“Well, awareness is everything, right,” AJ Alon, Umoja member, said. “So it’s a good thing that we have all of these different clubs supporting … Because, you know, we’re not treating [Earth] too well.”
Umoja’s table was filled with dozens of tiny succulents in vibrant colors and unique shapes. Alon and other members took turns asking students about Earth-related trivia questions. With three correct answers, students could take home a funky plant of their choice.
“On the back of each of each succulent, we have a little flag that has our logo. Also on other side, [it] has a short biography of five different Black Earth scientists. So we kind of just want to show off them and just what they did,” Samantha Miller, Umoja member, said.
The Active Minds table was set up beside the therapy dogs in advocacy for Stress Less Week.
Active Minds aims to shift the conversations around mental health and seeks to support students interested in learning more about available services.
Succulent plants also decorated the Active Minds table to raise awareness of the Student Wellness Advocacy Group (SWAG).
“I like to garden. It’s a good mindfulness, mental health thing for me,” Lumen Charlton, Active Minds member, said. “And so, taking care of the Earth and growing things and stuff. It’s very important to me. And I think it’s really important to preserve the native flora and fauna in California.”
Charlton, who uses they/them pronouns, said that they’ve met several people through Active Minds and they wish more students knew about the helpful services provided.
Future SWAG wellness workshop and event information can be found on their Instagram.
Active Minds president and SWAG peer mentor Mark Marasigan drew curious eyes while wearing an inflatable dog costume and holding a banner that read “Stress Less Week.” The inflatable pup waddled — quite noticeably — through the tables, earning a few barks from the real therapy dogs.
Other organizations like the Asian Pacific Islander club shared their hopes for more student involvement.
“We’re just giving out waters and drinks, but really, just bringing awareness of our people and letting our population of students know and be aware that we’re here,” Sina Laie, member of the Asian Pacific Islander club, said.
The Wildlife Club decorated its table with informational posters to help the local wildlife. Suggestions included installing bird feeders, nest boxes, and planting native trees and flowers like the San Diego native California Sunflower.
Palomar’s Wildlife Club hosts birding, tidepooling, hiking and other conservation events throughout the year.
“Earth Day to me means natural,” Laie said. “To our natural being, coming to our true self through Earth.”
For more information on campus events like this, visit the Palomar College’s events calendar here.
Story edited on April 23 @ 11:47 a.m. A previous version of this story stated “Love on The Leash’s therapy dogs” and was changed to “Love on a Leash’s therapy dogs.”
