Humber College’s Ignite launches pop-up café for Lakeshore students

On Jan. 15, Humber College’s Ignite student union hosted a pop-up café for students at Lakeshore campus. The three day event offered students free customizable Beavertails and hot beverages.

 “It’s really all about Mental Health, that we’re really trying to focus on for this kind of event,” says Jeremy Largos-Alfonso, the Vice-President at
North Campus for Ignite. “One of the biggest things for students is kind of ‘you come in at 8 am, you’re really tired. Your spirits are down so we really thought that having an event like this would really kind of cheer people up. You get a free pastry and free coffee. No matter how your day is going it’s always nice to get something free at the end of the day’”.

Throughout the school year, school-funded Ignite staff organize numerous events for students.

According to Largos-Alfonso, the reason behind bringing the Cafe to campus was because, during the previous year, Ignite, ran a similar event at both the Lakeshore and North campuses. The response from students was positive and Ignite decided to revisit the idea.

“We come up with a lot of concepts pieces for what would be good and what would be tailored to students,” says Largos-Alfonso. “Last year we ran a similar kind of get up with Beavertails and actually hot chocolate. We decided to keep it generally the same this year because of how well it really did and how well it resonated with students.”

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Staff set up food and beverage stations before Cafe opens

Daria Liashenko, a student in the Marketing Management program explained why she decided to attend the event.

“To grab coffee, especially when it’s free,” she says with a laugh. “I want to meet people. Second of all  I’m really interested in every kind of activities. I actually came here to ask about some events.”

Motioning to her half-eaten dessert on the table in front of her, she says, “It’s the first time I’m actually trying it [the dessert]. The guys [behind the counter] told me that it this is a Canadian dessert. It’s good.”

Humber student Melody Menezes of the Behavioural science program, sat nearby enjoying a Beavertail. When asked why she decided to stop by the Café, in one word she replied, “Beavertails.”

Menezes recommended the Beavertail with the peanut butter topping, for those looking to try the dessert for the first time.

Small groups of students, little by little,  trickled into the coffee scented building as the morning continued, stopping by to grab a quick bite or get free Ignite merchandise after entering an Ignite run contest for a chance to win $5,000.

Along with the contest running until the end of January, Largos-Alfonso says there are other upcoming events students should look out for including the Ignite election in the future months.

“We’ll have random pop up events in the cafeteria and then we’re also planning regular students events as the months come on.”

For a list of upcoming events visit Ignite’s website.