With the closing of the FEST survey Friday, Feb. 1, the hype surrounding this highly anticipated DePaul event will inevitably remain in a lull until the May 24 date of the concert approaches. However, even though a large number of DePaul students attend FEST and look forward to it all year, many may not know much about how – and why – the concert came about. While FEST is known for bringing relevant, big-name performers to its stage, this was not always the case.
Former FEST coordinator Liz Palomo explained that when FEST first came to DePaul’s campus 27 years ago, it was of a far smaller scale and genre. She estimates that only a few hundred students attended this low-key blues concert, which was hosted on Wish Field and had “much less of a grandiose set-up than we have now.”
FEST’s original focus and purpose were also drastically different than they are now. Formerly known as “FESTival,” Palomo said that it “was a way to give back to the Lincoln Park community” and also thank the surrounding neighborhood for allowing “a bunch of college kids (to) rock out in their backyard for a night.” Not only did the concert take a different form, but it also incorporated many more “carnival” elements. FESTival’s coordinators strove to attract the community by providing the traditional games and food popular to carnivals, all of which were offered before the FEST concert itself.
While this format outlined FEST for a few years, Palomo explains that the planners of FESTival came to realize that a large portion of the neighborhood had schedules which prevented them from attending. Palomo goes on to say that it was at this time that they realized a change had to be made.
“We reconsidered and instead offered alternatives like movie tickets (and) family oriented outings,” said Palomo.
However, FEST had yet to reach its final evolution. As time went on, coordinators continued to look to new ways to cater FEST best not only to the community as a whole, but also to its main target: the students. Many coordinators and trial runs later, FEST transformed into the large-scale, popular event that it is today. Palomo states that FEST’s popularity has sky-rockted since the early 2000s.
“(Performers’) names just kept on getting bigger and bigger and more people became aware and excited about FEST,” said Palom. “The continued growth of DePaul Activities Board” is monumental toward FEST’s current success, says Palom, recognizing the hard work of a host of planners and DAB members.
Not only does FEST provide the student body as a whole with amazing memories and enjoyable times with friends, but it also contributes significantly to the personal growth of the students in charge of its planning. Palomo refers to her experience as FEST coordinator as one that “cannot even be described in words.” She explains that it “gave me an even clearer vision of what I wanted to do with my life, but also taught me so much about working in a team.” However, Palomo is quick to include that she could never have planned such a large event without the help of her committee and members of DAB: “I learned that a professional’s best help is a great team.” Clearly, FEST is an event that involves a large group of passionate, dedicated students who want to provide their fellow students with the best experience possible.
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