TBS/KKY Holiday Party

By Emily Saunders

As the semester comes to an end and finals week approaches, there’s no better way to destress than getting together for some festive celebration at the annual TBS/KKY Holiday Party! It’s the perfect time to emerge from the piles of exam reviews and essays, get all dressed up, and spend time with friends. Every year, the sisters of Beta Gamma extend an invitation to the newest membership candidate class to join in the festivities. We’re so excited to welcome this fantastic group of people to our family and we can’t wait to help them through their candidacy process next semester!

The night kicks off with everybody sitting down to a fancy dinner, followed promptly with cake and hot chocolate (what else?). After dinner, there’s time for everyone to mingle, catch up, and of course, take lots of pictures! Our Social Ritual Committee did a fantastic job getting us all in the holiday spirit with plenty of festive decorations and an adorable photo booth featuring Santa hats, reindeer antlers, and even Bevo horns! Every class was sure to get a picture together, from our seniors in XELU to our youngest class of actives in LANU. In addition to class pictures, members of TBS and KKY got together to get section pictures. Our sections are our families in Longhorn Band, and even more so when we share a common love for service and sister and brotherhood! Looking at all of our sisters and brothers spread across every section in the band is a fun reminder of just how many people in Longhorn Band are also members (or future members) of one of these great organizations committed to serving our band and our community. Seeing our family get bigger and bigger, not only in TBS but also in KKY, is one of my favorite parts of holiday party, as it’s one of the first events the most recent class of KKY gets to attend as active members!

Of course, the night wasn’t just for pictures and food! Everyone had the option to stick around after the festivities for a white elephant holiday gift exchange. The gifts are always hilarious, creative, and full of holiday cheer. From hot chocolate sets and festive scented candles to coloring books, funny socks, and even a four-foot-tall Stormtrooper action figure, everyone’s gifts were enjoyed by all.

Holiday Party is the perfect time to look back fondly on a successful marching season and get excited for the spring! The spring semester is a busy one for Beta Gamma as we look forward to welcoming our new membership candidates officially into our chapter as well as continuing to serve LHB and the Austin community. We’re so excited to get started!