Whether this is your first semester at Elizabethtown College or you’ve been around for a few years, getting involved in activities on campus is one of the best ways to feel connected to the Etown community. Although we’re already a few weeks into the start of the semester, a majority of clubs and organizations are still accepting new members. The Anime Club is no exception, so now’s your chance to try something new!
Headed by President Katie Yorgey, Vice President Jayden Ryan, Secretary Larissa Halber and Treasurer Ben Armitage, alongside two students training for officer positions, the club has about 15 active members and is advised by Associate Professor of Japanese and Asian Studies Mahua Bhattacharya.
The Anime Club’s first official meeting of the semester took place on Sept. 6, and they will continue to meet from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Fridays in Hoover 212. While the meetings are scheduled for every week, the club isn’t meant to be a stressful obligation, and students can still be a part of the club without attending every meeting.
“All club meetings are optional to attend, and you can leave whenever you want,” said sophomore Treasurer-in-Training Adam Brockett. “No pressure at all, seriously.”
According to Brockett, the club’s meetings are mostly informal gatherings, in which members “relax, talk and watch anime.” He described it as “a bunch of friends hanging out with some TV on in the background as they do things.”
In addition to watching shows together, the club arranges a handful of other events throughout the course of a semester, including game nights hosted in conjunction with other clubs, a cosplay competition for Halloween around the end of October and a lock-in.
“With a lock-in, it’s pretty much what it sounds like,” said Brockett. “We lock ourselves in a room and just hang out all night, chilling.”
Brockett has been a member of the club since his first semester at Etown, joining as soon as he was able.
“I had an interest in anime and watched it on my own, and I figured I’d meet people who shared that interest,” he said. “I only had one friend at the time, and he’s always busy, so my parents encouraged me to branch out.”
Since then, Brockett has enjoyed his time in the Anime Club, citing “the relaxing vibes, the lack of obligations and the people.”
During the second day of Etown’s Homecoming and Family Weekend, you’ll be able to find the club selling Pokémon-shaped cookies and custom-made anime pins designed by the PR-in-Training Caitlynd Smith at their table on the Academic Quad.
For updates and announcements regarding the club’s future events, you can follow them on Instagram (@etownanimeclub). Their Instagram bio also features a link to the Anime Club’s Discord server, where the officers are frequently active. Alternatively, you can join the club’s weekly mailing list by emailing animeclub@etown.edu to express your interest and receive more information.
