PICNIC GREETS STUDENTS; UNIVERSITY DINING SERVICE SHOWS OFF NEW MENU

~Correction: Chatwells should read CHARTWELLS

By Sunday afternoon most parents had said farewell to their college student child and another group of Southeast Missouri State University students were ready to sample life on their own.

They found plenty of samplings at the annual Back to School picnic at Capaha Park.

Free food, entertainment and plenty of "freebies" drew the students to the park shelters for the afternoon. Dr. Zhivegas, a popular St. Louis-area band, entertained them while they talked with old friends and made some new ones.

Those students who didn't sit to talk or listen to the band, gathered those "freebies" or canoed across the park's lagoon. And everybody ate. And ate some more.

The Back to School picnic wasn't full of your standard picnic fare this year. It was quite a change from past years, said John Mehner, president of the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce. The chamber annually sponsors the picnic.

"We usually just grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for the kids," he said.

Sunday's picnic was a feast for the taste buds as various geographic area and their food specialties were highlighted. The "Windy City" of Chicago offered Polish sausages, San Antonio had its chicken and vegetable fajitas, students found chicken gumbo at the New Orleans booth, fresh shrimp could be found in the Maryland area and a table heaped with a variety of fresh fruit was waiting at the Florida Keys.

Rob Kearns, a senior from Denver, was attending his fifth picnic, and trying to recruit for Sigma Nu fraternity.

"I was a senior in high school and came the first time with my brother," he said. He liked the change in the food this year.

The picnic menu isn't the only change this year; the entire food scene at the university is changing. Chatwells' Education Dining Services is now the university's dining service company.

"They offered to help us with the picnic as sort of a coming out party for them," said Mehner.

Chris Nelson, director of dining services at the university, said the picnic was a grand opening for Chatwells.

Since the meal plan offers a Sunday dinner to students this year, Nelson said the picnic needed to be more than just snack foods. "We felt we had to give them a good meal."

Chatwells was prepared to feed 2,000 to 3,000 at Sunday's event.

Holly Yeager, a senior from Popular Bluff and president of the Student Activities Committee (SAC), thought Chatwells had done an amazing job with the food, but spent most of her time at the SAC dunking booth. .

"We want to get everyone involved that we can," said Yeager.

SAC also sponsors various campus activities throughout the year. The group already brought a hypnotist to the campus and held a wax hand event for the students.