On Sat., April 20, the freshmen and sophomores living on the fifth floor of Traber Hall (T5) hosted their annual root beer kegger from 2–5 p.m. Strolling across campus in chilly afternoon air, students from across campus made their way to the back lawn of Smith-Traber Hall. There, the T5ers had set up a table with a keg of root beer, vanilla ice cream and red solo cups, all to construct root beer floats.
The annual Residence Life-sponsored social event has been happening for nearly 20 years, according to multiple sources on T5.
Silas Kyun, a junior studying computer science, is the resident advisor (RA) of T5 this year. After living on T5 for two years, he knew he’d be responsible for this year’s kegger. But the event is mainly composed of simple lawn games and activities, so he wasn’t too stressed about coordinating all the details, even though hundreds of students stopped by over the course of the afternoon.
“You don’t have to think a lot about the event because it’s just this nice event where people can come and drink root beer and play games,” said Kyun.
Students, faculty and alumni alike can attest that Wheaton College is not well-known for its party scene. In fact, on Wheaton College’s page on Niche, a school review site, the “party scene” category holds the lowest grade — a C minus — of all the rated aspects of campus life, such as academics, athletics and diversity.
Legend says that the kegger is the only event keeping the grade as high as it is.
Although no one is sure exactly when it started, the kegger has been around for years, bringing students together for a few hours of fun as the semester winds down. The kegger is wittily self-aware, capitalizing on the dissonance between the connotations of its name and the sober, Covenant-approved activities. With free treats, sand volleyball, spikeball and live music performances from students, the only damper was on the keyboard.
A student helps himself to root beer from the keg. Photo by Lilliana Taussig 
Christian Fink enjoys his root beer float. Photo by Lilliana Taussig. 
Students play in a sand volleyball game outside. Photo by Lilliana Taussig. 
Musicians set up their gear for a performance. Photo by Lilliana Taussig. 
Students stand in line for their root beer floats. Photo by Lilliana Taussig.
Kyun’s first kegger was in spring 2022, when the college maintained COfVID-19 guidelines such as masking and isolation for COVID-positive students. Last year’s event was held inside on T5 due to rainy weather. For this year’s outdoor kegger, Kyun looked to his freshman year for inspiration.
“My first year’s kegger was really good,” said Kyun. “Nice warm weather, it was like 80 degrees and sunny, pretty similar to how it is now, just warmer. And we had a couple bands going.”
The number of bands this year was upped to five as there was no shortage of Community Covenant-approved fun at this party. Historically, the event has included not only live music, but also other Covenant-approved activities like last year’s “kissing booth,” where students jokingly read a love poem to each other and exchange Hershey Kisses.
For many students, regardless of their affiliation with T5, the root beer kegger is a beloved tradition. Jonathan Miesse, a senior studying Christian formation and ministry, lived on T5 during his first three years and served as RA last year. This was his fourth year attending the kegger. Miesse said events like this are special because they allow a break from the monotony of studying. He also said it provides more space to connect with other people, especially the residents of T5’s sister floor, the second floor to the south (2S).
“I think the best thing about it is the bro-sis connection,” Meisse said. “T5 and 2S have always coordinated, making it a fun event and coming to support each other.”
The kegger is always scheduled for late April, just as classes are ramping up for finals week and students are feeling the stresses of another semester coming to a close. But for three hours, students can take a break from the books and relax before finals with some root beer floats, games and music.
“It’s like a de-stressing moment for the campus,” said Meisse. “I think that’s really special and really needed at this time of year.”
Marko Vuletic, a sophomore international relations major, said the kegger was one of the first Residence Life-sponsored events that he attended in his first year. Coming to this event, he said, encouraged him to start attending more events like it. Vuletic also said losing some studying time was worth it because he gained time to be in community and foster friendships.
“It’s supposed to be fun and games, and that’s the emphasis on building community,” he said. “Pulling people away from the stress of studying and just being like, you know what? It’s okay to do that.”
Brandon Mayo, a senior studying mathematics, is a T5 alumnus who always makes sure to stop by the kegger. This year, he took the opportunity to give away some mugs and bowls he made in his ceramics class, setting up shop a few paces away from the root beer table.
“Bringing root beer, bringing music, bringing ice cream, bringing volleyball – it just brings all of Smaber, Fischer, a lot of the junior and senior alumni back for more,” said Mayo.
Jacob Elsen, a senior studying biology and another T5 alumnus, was also glad to be back at his kegger stomping grounds.
“I’m back because I love T5 and because T5 guys are awesome,” said Elsen. “They have a unique knack for building community with guys on the floor and people off the floor.”
