Every year, chapters all over the Greater Atlanta Region host Big/Little events. Each chapter adds its own little spice to the event, and this year, Mizrah BBG hosted a carnival-themed event. Starting from the beginning of the program to the end, everyone was surrounded by the vibes of a fall carnival, hanging out with their best friends. The theme truly tied together the point of a Big/Little event, creating new bonds that will last in and out of BBYO. 

We began the program with a very divisive icebreaker. Everyone was split into groups and given three to four images. They had to pick one of the three/four images to get rid of. For example, one decision was between French toast, waffles, pancakes, and cinnamon rolls. All good choices, so many arguments broke out. 

Next, we moved into our Havdalah. Our amazing Sh’licha created these aDORAble (get it, because Mizrah’s mascot is Dora the Explorer) carnival ticket sheets and had everyone write down their goals for the year. This helped everyone connect their life inside of BBYO to their dreams in and out of BBYO.

After dinner, we had a few rotations of carnival games. Outside, we hung donuts on a string, and the first person in each group to get the donut off of the string without using their hands won each round. Inside, we made carnival-themed cookies, like balloons, teddy bears, tickets, etc., and decorated them however we pleased. Then, we brought everyone together and did a round of speed dating. This made sure that everyone was getting to know each other, not just paired Bigs and Littles. 

The moment that everyone had been waiting for finally arrived; reveals. We piled everyone into the movie room and gave everyone carnival tickets with specific numbers on them. Each number signified each pair of Bigs and Littles, and as each pair of numbers was called, screams of excitement were heard throughout the whole house. Personally, it was the best feeling seeing the smiles on my little’s faces, and it made going to the event and signing up for BBYO extremely worth it. 

After reveals, we calmed down, only a little bit, though. We had our official business meeting where we chose our chapter theme for our upcoming convention, elected an MIT rep, chose our standup cause, and completed a bunch of different dare jars. This final tradition rounded out the night very well, and as everyone was going to sleep, we watched the movie The Greatest Showman to truly tie in the carnival program theme. 

Overall, the program was a massive success, and lifelong memories were made. BBYO families grew fuller, and new friendships flourished, not only between Bigs and Littles but between every member of Mizrah BBG.