The Joseph F. Smith library staff tested students’ knowledge of their services in a pirate-themed Hidden Treasures event on Sept. 19, or International Talk Like a Pirate Day according to talklikeapirate.com. Staff members dressed up as pirates, gave students paper coins, and some even spoke like pirates.Students randomly drew two cards that had names of different services in the library, such as the Academic Multimedia Lab and the Media Services. Students had to answer questions at each location pertaining to the rules or resource of the service. For each location, students received a gold coin for answering. They could then exchange the two coins for bags of free candy.Kei Riggins, senior from California studying music, said, “I think it’s clever. I think it’s a fun way to get people to come to the library and know the rules.”Usually the Hidden Treasures event is done on Halloween, but according to Zoia Falevai, the staff decided to hold it early this semester because Graduation Commencement is on Halloween and school will be out. A reference librarian and chair of the marketing team, Falevai said the team decided to hold the event on International Speak Like a Pirate Day so it was right after midterms. She said she gives credit to her team members, Margie Taroo and Ka'ala L., for helping her coordinate the event.Natalie Powell, a student worker at the library, wore a mermaid tail her mother gave to her for the event. Powell, a senior from Texas studying social work, said, “It’s a great opportunity for people to learn what is available at the library and what resources are available.” She said she thinks students will remember what they learned because of how fun it is also that they had to put in some effort to get that candy.Jimin Lee, a graduated TESOL major from South Korea, participated in the event. Although he didn’t know some of the questions, he said he was able to figure out the answer and learn more about the library.Erik Winegar, a senior from Utah studying business management, went to the library to work on a project but remembered the free candy from last year’s event. “When I come here and get this free candy, it makes my day,” he said with a smile. “I hope everyday they do stuff like this with free candy and sometimes free food.”
Writer: Stephanie Soto
