Under pink lights and with a cardboard cutout of President Barack Obama in the corner, students came in droves to celebrate the end of an era and dance for a cause Saturday night.
College Democrats’ annual winter ball, this year dubbed the Thanks Obama Ball, was planned to coincide with the inauguration to celebrate Obama’s legacy. Tickets were sold out several days before the event and $10,500 in proceeds from the 500 tickets sold went to Planned Parenthood.
Lande Watson, the president of the CDs, said the ball was designed as a supplement or alternative to GW’s official inaugural ball hosted Friday night.
“We purposely planned the event for the night after the GW Inaugural Ball so people would have the opportunity to attend both events or, if they cannot afford to attend the inaugural ball, they still have a fun, philanthropic alternative,” Watson said in an email.
Levi Debose, the CDs’ vice president of communications, said because the tickets were sold out, University Police Department officers counted the partygoers as they entered and exited the City View Room in the Elliott School of International Affairs to enforce the room’s occupancy limit.
Halfway through the three-hour event, 330 people had signed in, which was near double the turnout for the CDs’ winter ball last year, Debose said. The CDs had partnered with Planned Parenthood for events before, but this was the first year that all proceeds were given to the organization, he added.
Students spent the night posing with life-size cardboard cutouts of Obama, former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Vice President Joe Biden, while holding “Stand with Planned Parenthood” signs.
To go with the theme of the night, one wall was covered with sticky notes that students wrote thank you notes to Obama on.
Lights were turned off in the main dance floor area and the room was lit by hanging strings of pink lights. Pink balloons flew across the room, blue glowsticks waved in the air and voices sang out with chants against Trump.
Celeste Aguzino, a senior majoring in political communication, said she originally bought a ticket to GW’s inaugural ball on Election Day but decided not to go after U.S. President Donald Trump’s victory.
“I realized over break that if my friends didn’t feel safe and comfortable at an event, even if it is University-sponsored, I did not want to attend,” she said. “I did want to go to this event because College Democrats has done such an amazing job at being an inclusive group.”
Ryan Gallagher, a sophomore majoring in political science, said he bought a ticket for the Thanks Obama Ball from someone he knew an hour before the event started.
Once “deeply conservative,” Gallagher said he now considers himself a “more conservative Democrat” because of Obama.
“[Obama] inspired people like myself and was a good influence on this nation,” he said. “This is a celebration of eight great years behind a truly great president.”
