Annual Employee Picnic, July 9

“Women for the world/ivy–chain alums unite/generations soar!”

Think you can name the Smith character who inspired the above haiku?

Find out if you’re right at the annual All–Employee Picnic set for July 9 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on the lawn outside the Campus Center.

The theme of this year’s event, which typically draws upwards of 700 college employees, is “Smith characters.”

“That’s been interpreted as meaning people,” says Kathy San Antonio, the college’s events and scheduling administrator, with a smile.

Picnic organizers have been collecting short haiku poems from staff members about their favorite college characters. The three–line poems—and the identities of the characters they describe—will be displayed on monitors on Chapin Lawn outside the Campus Center during the picnic. [Download the flyer here.]

A special photo booth will also be set up for those who want to pose in costume as Smith characters, San Antonio says.

College departments will close during picnic hours so their employees can join the fun. The lunchtime fare, catered by Dining Services, will include sandwiches, wraps, salads and hand-scooped ice cream from Maple Valley Creamery in Hadley.

As in previous years, the picnic will also host a drive for the Northampton Survival Center. Non-perishable foods, clothing, shoes, children’s books and personal care items collected will help low–income residents served by the center.

For those eager to practice their Smith character-naming skills, here are some other haiku submissions:

“Sun reflecting off/his bald head is not as blind/-ing as his quick wit.”

“Artistically/he’s clearly one of a kind/who bowls us over.”

 “Always flexible/gracious,welcoming, smiling/she has fed us all.”

To volunteer for a 30-minute shift at the picnic, email ksananto@smith.edu.