Raises money and awareness for less well-known clubs
BY ELLEN ROSSOW
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Last Saturday the CMU was transformed as a handful of student organizations came together to present their annual event: Moarcon.
The Comic-Con-like event filled the majority of the CMU with activities put on by members of Anime Club, Gamers Club, Comic Book Club, Writers Ink and Fantasy Guild.
English and mass communications senior Marcus Amundson was pleased with the outcome of the convention this year.
“The purpose of Moarcon was to have a small yet impactful convention,” he said.
Amundson belives that the various clubs succeeded in doing just that.
“All the clubs participating worked hard to make it a fun experience by hosting panels and other activities relating to their clubs,” he said.
As Gamers Club president, Amundson had great involvement in the convention, from working the admissions table to running a panel with one of his friends. His panel about a game series called “Metal Gear Solid” was developed specifically to answer questions players may have about the games.
“It’s a stealth action game series with a somewhat confusing storyline,” he said. “All I wanted to do was answer any questions people might have, and summarize the plot using humorous videos.”
Besides panels like Amundson’s, Moarcon also gave attendees the opportunity to play video games with their friends.
“There was a fighting game tournament in the Underground that included the fighting games “Super Street Fighter 4,” “Injustice,” “Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3,” “Persona 4 Arena” and “Super Smash Bros. Brawl,” he said.
There was also a game room in the upper level of the CMU that had older consoles like Nintendo 64 and Sega Dreamcast, as well as more recently released consoles, such as the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
According to Amundson, the students putting on the convention “just wanted to make sure people were having fun.”
Louis Zern, a graphic communications sophomore who helped run the admissions table, said the convention fullfilled exactly what it was trying to do.
“I had a great time as always,” he said. “I loved helping out.”
Art junior Christina Torgerson was involved with the planning of the convention and was very pleased with the outcome as well.
“I feel it went really well,” she said. “All things went as planned.”
Although the turnout was less than she expected, she still is happy to be involved.
“The people who were there really enjoyed themselves,” she said.
Throughout the convention, money was raised in an assortment of ways, from a silent auction to the selling of various items like cupcakes and hats.
Some of the money raised will go back to the clubs involved.
“It was an effort to raise money for these clubs that don’t receive the same amount of attention as some of the other, better known student organizations,” Amundson said. “But they are just as meaningful to the students who attend.”
The various clubs intend to donate any excess money to local charities, although they are not sure which ones at this time.
According to Torgerson, the event wouldn’t have been possible without the help of a plethora of individuals and some local businesses, specifically Paradox Comics-N-Cards and Section 9 Cyber Cafe.
“They donated a notable amount of gift cards and merchandise,” she said.
She also had a list of individuals that she felt the convention wouldn’t have been possible without.
“I’d like to give notable thank you’s to Meghan Mclaughlen, Kyle Courteau, Danyel Stanley, Natalie Devick, Cambria Castel and Genelle Gardner,” Torgerson said. “The amount of volunteers was amazing.”
Overall, those involved in Moarcon are pleased with the outcome and can’t wait for next year.
“This is a tradition that will go on for years to come,” Torgerson said. “It’s my hope that it is even bigger and more wonderful next year.”