Saint Mary's Student Activities Board (SAB) will host its annual SMC-Tostal today. The event will be marked by an afternoon of activities in the student center, culminating in a concert by new and upcoming female recording artist, Colbie Caillat.
The name SMC-Tostal was modeled after an Irish spring festival from the 1960s An-Tostal - short for Annual Tostal - according to senior Cassie Callon, SAB Coordinator.
"The Student Activites Board has been putting on this event all four years that I have been here," Callon said. "As far as I can find in the yearbooks, SMC-Tostal has been celebrated since the 1970s here at [Saint Mary's] and has just been one of those traditional events that never lost steam."
Special events for the day include a performance by "Katius," an alternative rock band from Dayton, Ohio, in the Student Center Lounge. There will also be a caricature artist and balloon animals available from 12 to 3 p.m., Callon said.
There will also be a special dessert bar in the Noble Family Dining Hall for dinner.
The headlining event of the day is a free concert at 7 p.m. in O'Laughlin Auditorium featuring Colbie Caillat, accompanied by singer/songwriter Jason Reeves.
Caillat, 22, is most recognized for her recent hit song, "Bubbly."
While Caillat was not exactly the performer that SAB originally set out to find, they were quite happy with the match.
"We had our eye on a group of performers," Callon said. "Once we started calling around to agencies to see which performer best fit with our Tostal date, Colbie [Caillat] seemed like a perfect match. We are very excited to have such an up-and-coming female artist visit our campus."
The concert has been much anticipated around Saint Mary's campus, and SAB's hard work to put on this event year after year is appreciated by students.
"I'm very excited to experience my first SMC Tostal," freshman SAB member Rachael Chesley said. " I've witnessed all the hard work that gets put into it and I can't wait for Saint Mary's students to kick back and have a great night," she said.
