A hot new event has entered Malibu’s campus.
Pepperdine’s event planning group, The Board, hosted a community building engagement Sept. 6 with all things “Love Island.” From the games to the water bottles, it almost felt like the real show, Brooke Bakken, The Board event planner, said.
“Basically, we [Bakken’s committee] love ‘Love Island,'” Bakken said. “We just wanted to bring the villa to Pepperdine.”
With the reality television show recently trending, Bakken said she saw the perfect opportunity for a fun night.
The event provided popular food options, free “Love Island” themed water bottles and a game with a prize. Most importantly, the event provided space for students to build new bonds, Bakken said.
“Love Island” Themed Game Builds New Friendships
When students checked into the event, they were asked if they wanted to enter the island as a “bombshell.”
If so, they were paired with a random partner. The pair was given 20 minutes to learn as much as they could about each other for the competition.
Teams would then face off and answer questions, to test how well they knew each other.
Sophomore Jewelene Vash made it to the final round of the competition, and she and her teammate had a strategy that carried them far.
“In periods when we weren’t in the game, we would just ask each other new questions,” Vash said.
While they were competing in the moment, Vash said the game brought her closer to her teammate, Sarina Patel.
“I feel a lot closer to Sarina now that I know her whole life story and random facts,” Vash said.
This bonding was the purpose of the event, Bakken said.
“It [the event] was for people to meet new people,” Bakken said. “You’re putting yourself out there.”
After multiple rounds, students Victoria Lopez and Lainey Powers won the “Love Island” competition and a $100 gift card to Duke’s Malibu seafood restaurant.
Perfect Timing for New Friendships
Not only was the event at a perfect time to jump on the “Love Island” trend, but it was also during sorority and fraternity recruitment.
“I think another purpose was to give people who maybe aren’t rushing space where they are still able to meet people and make a new friend,” Bakken said.
Despite a large amount of students involved in Greek life recruitment, the event was still a success, with over 100 students coming for “Board Island,” Bakken said.
“With rush going on this weekend,” Bakken said. “We weren’t expecting that number.”
This was not the first event of the year, and it certainly will not be the last, according to The Board’s website.
The event planning group will host a tie-dying and punch event Sept. 20 from 4-6 p.m. It will be on the Beaman Patio, and registration is free, according to the The Board’s website.
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Contact Emma Martinez via email: emma.martinez@pepperdine.edu or by Instagram: @emma.martinez17
