DECEMBER 12, 2025 | ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | By Allison Garcia
Lights filled the downtown streets of Colorado Springs, Colo., during the Festival of Lights viewing party on Saturday, Dec. 6.
The event was organized by Nancy Ríos, Director of Belonging and Engagement, to get students to engage in the downtown community.
The night was filled with warm winter attire and luminescence, as Ríos introduced her initiative to strengthen CC’s community.
“These major festivals and parades happen right downtown and our lack of participation has felt like a missed opportunity,” Ríos said.
“If students show interest tonight, we want that interest to turn into real collaboration, not just us saying we’re doing this, but building it together.”
In this call for community engagement, the event highlighted an opportunity to bring together various CC student groups.
As students gathered on the second floor of Worner, they made new connections before heading out onto downtown streets. Cookies, hot cocoa and warm holiday treats set the stage for the celebration of the upcoming holiday season.
After viewing the lights, parade floats, trucks and buses adorned with Christmas decorations along with Grinch-costumed characters and multiple Santas, students reflected on the distance they sometimes feel from the greater Colorado Springs community and the event’s power to bring students together in a new way.
Molly Luikart ’29 stated, “CC can be kind of a bubble sometimes, so it was fun to get off campus and see more of the Colorado Springs community. I went with a group of CC students I wouldn’t normally hang out with, and it was really fun.”
Abigail Hill ’29 shared a similar perspective on the excitement the festival brought to the town.
“I loved seeing all of the locals out and about; it made me realize that it’s actually a city,” Hill said. “I thought it was really sweet that we got to see UCCS students. It made it feel like there was a university community in Colorado Springs, especially with the director’s excitement to see CC students.”
The holiday cheer gave students a chance to unwind, connect and get into the spirit of the season.