A ghastly, undead creature haunts one of APSU's bowls, demonstrating the mechanical and creative ingenuity of APSU students.

G.H.O.S.T. hosted creepy thrills and a fun night full of treats without tricks. Austin Peay State University student organizations and departments opened the campus to the community to give parents, and children the chance to have a safe time while trick or treating. Students stood in the twilight hours of the fading October sun, dressed in various costumes with spectacular organizational displays.

Some organizations such as the Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA), and Chi Epsilon Mu had costume themes. Those two groups chose vampires and pirates, respectively. Chi Epsilon Mu won the first place prize for their two-story pirate ship playhouse display, allowing members to man the tables, and the vessel in true ship-man teamwork.

G.H.O.S.T., a long-stranding tradition at Austin Peay State University, stands for Greater Halloween Options for Safe Trick or Treating, and is presented annually by the SGA on the last Sunday before Halloween between the hours of 4:30 pm to 7:00 pm.

Ahoy Mateys! Chi Epsilon Mu took home first place for their pirate playhouse again this year.

APSU has been offering G.H.O.S.T. since the program’s inception in 1996, and ever since participation has been growing and growing. And the twelfth annual G.H.O.S.T. this past Sunday was no exception according to APSU SGA Adviser Greg Singleton.

Student groups start setting up an hour early, but the advance preparation far exceeds that. Many groups with new members who have not done the event before may have to make candy runs, or borrow candy from another group. For the first time in five years, the GSA almost completed the candy giving until near the very end of the event even with an emergency candy run; it took just over twenty-four bags of candy.

Singleton, who has been acting adviser since 2007,  said, “This was probably one of the years that has the most attendance based upon feedback we received from student set up boxes for the children. We know for a fact almost 2,000 people were here yesterday, including 1,600 children because we distributed over 1,600 books.”

GSAers James Butler and Melinda Aceae pose for the camera. Melinda created the coffin the group used to house the Pumpkinhead body stuffed with candy.

There have been no incidents at G.H.O.S.T. as Singleton stated public safety patrols the area, which is filled with staff members and students.

When asked what G.H.O.S.T. brings to the community table in the overwhelming success of the program, Singleton said, “I think it provides children an environment to have safe trick or treating in a safe atmosphere. Our campus provides services to the community where children can go and it’s in a safe, controlled environment.”

For APSU student organizations who wish to participate, they must fill out a G.H.O.S.T. registration packet, that now appears on the website in the Fall semester. Only the second year that the forms have been provided online, the G.H.O.S.T. packets are available at the following URL: http://www.apsu.edu/sga/, and must be returned by the SGA deadline to the Office of Student Affairs.

Click here to view the embedded video.

As the last event the GSA is hosting this year, it hopes to help give a voice to those whose voices cannot be heard. According to the GSA leadership, the message of the Day of Silence is a very important one. James Butler, GSA secretary, notes how the decision was made to bring the event to the Austin Peay campus, “Basically, we [Butler, David Shelton, and Curtis Davis] were sitting around at one of our weekly get-togethers and we said ‘wouldn’t it be great if?’ and things went from there.”

In the end, the GSA hopes that everyone will take the time to think about the voices that they aren’t hearing and decide to listen.

In his book, Shelton tackles the question “Can a person be both gay and a christian?” According to Shelton the answer is a resounding “yes!” However, unlike other books that have been devoted to this topic, Shelton’s work attempts to take a conversational tone with the reader. According to Shelton the research dissertation tone of other works on this topic detracts from its usability as a resource for gay christians. The book is already gathering positive reviews.

Shelton and the Gay Straight Alliance would like to invite everyone out to the Gentry Auditorium (Kimbrough Building, Room 119) tonight to hear his presentation on the book. There will be light refreshments served and the evening is expected to have a moderate turnout and proceed without incident. Check back later for more detailed coverage of the event after it is done.

A day without the art work that one is used to viewing on campus on a daily basis is a silent, yet poignant vigil to those who have died, or been infected from the disease. World AIDS Day bills itself as “one of the most successful international days with activities taking place in almost all countries at the national and local levels.” The theme for 2006, according to www.worldaidsday.org, will be: “Stop AIDS, Keep the Promise.”

In memory of those who have died from the disease, the Gay-Straight Alliance will distribute literature on AIDS and HIV awareness with current statistics readily available. Inside the gallery, a volunteer will ring a bell every ten seconds to signify when another person dies of the virus. Recent 2006 statistics for the United States from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, www.unfpa.org, indicate that while AIDS related deaths were near a low 16,000 last year, there were a landmark 1.2 million persons living with AIDS and HIV, the most ever recorded. 

Complacency has spawned further apathy in recent years, especially in the Southern U.S. There has never been a greater need for Day Without Art. The goal this year: to jolt people out of their apathy and into a heightened state of action. AIDS is neither “just a gay disease,” nor is it “something that doesn’t affect us.” AIDS affects everyone, and is on the rise worldwide. 

People can help by wearing AIDS ribbons, spreading the word, and supporting Nashville Cares, a lifeline for AIDS/HIV patients and awareness. This event provides an exemplary opportunity for Austin Peay students, the university community, and the Clarksville community at large to unite against the spread of HIV, and AIDS.