Students from the Girls’ Houses celebrated with a Christmas party at Mellow Mushroom. They enjoyed pizza and some small activities, such as coloring, drawing and a secret Santa gift exchange.

“It was a lot of fun. Part of it was from the anticipation of getting a gift from a person you didn’t know,” freshman Daria Black said.

They enjoyed spending some time with their friends especially during stressful exam week.

“I think it’s always nice to get to know each other a little bit more and to take a break from studying, especially before everybody is going home for Christmas,” junior Billie Lange said.

Many enjoyed exchanging gifts with their secret Santas.

“The best part of the event for me is definitely the time of getting gifts. After everyone gets their presents, people go around the tables to find their secret Santa. I love it because it’s great to get a gift I want and to give others what they want for Christmas,” junior Amy Kim said. “In my opinion, it’s the most Christmas-like event of all Darlington’s events, especially with pizza”.

To boarding students, a small party to gather all girls from three different houses is a great opportunity to get along and share the Christmas spirit together even though they might not know each other yet.

“ The party connects us like a family. Opening presents is something most people do with family and friends,” Black said.