Various ETSU student organizations gathered to participate in the annual painting of the Pride Walk on Oct. 17, which is sponsored by SGA.

The painting of the Pride Walk allows organizations the opportunity to paint a logo or some other representation of their group for ETSU students, faculty and visitors to see.

This year there was an increase in applications, with over 40 student organizations wanting to participate. ETSU RHA, Lion’s Club, Physics Club, Pre-Health Community, the Marching Band, several fraternities and sororities were among the organizations that participated in the painting of the Pride Walk.

“This is the first year that the Lion’s Club has participated in the painting of the Pride Walk,” said Brandon Johnson, Lion’s Club Secretary. “I really think it’s an awesome thing, they do a really great job with this. The idea originally came through SGA and it’s grown into a really great event on campus.”

Organizations began painting around 10 a.m. by starting off with a white base coat before going over it with a solid color to be followed by their actual designs. In total, it took most student organizations around four hours to complete their artwork.

ETSU RHA, Residence Hall Association, has participated in the painting of the Pride Walk in years past, but each year presents them with a new opportunity to showcase their organization. RHA member Alisha Johnson appreciates that this is an event all members of an organization can participate in, not just the executives.

“The Pride Walk isn’t an event that only requires and executive board, it allows new and seasoned members to participate and work together on equal terms or allows newer members a chance to exercise leadership skills,” Alisha Johnson said. “As an artist myself the Pride Walk presents a life lesson that can be translated to an extent to others as well in terms of competition and quality for a design or piece to be chosen; but I think the most important experience organizations can get out of the Pride Walk is learning the art of communication.”

The event had plenty of spectators since the campus was full of current and prospective ETSU students and their families that came to attend orientations or campus tours.

“It was great to see such a huge variety of student organizations that participated, and I loved that this was held on an ETSU Orientation Day as well,” Johnson said. “It was good for future ETSU students and their families to be able to witness the event and see all of the student organizations come together to create something for the whole campus.”

The painting of the Pride Walk is an exciting and fun time for all of the organizations involved, however it does require a great deal of planning and organization to ensure that the final product is something their group can be proud of.

“Each painting for the Pride Walk has presented its own challenges as each design has been vastly different in complexity based upon the theme we are presented with, but proper planning and being prepared for challenges helps the overall process to go very smoothly,” Alisha Johnson said. “It’s a great opportunity to notify the student body of an organization, but there’s more to it than that. It’s an opportunity to bring any and all members of a group to participate in something bigger together.”

The finished product of the Pride Walk painting can be seen at the Pedestrian Mall located on the sidewalk in between Carter Residence Hall and the Amphitheatre by the Culp Center.

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