The popular Wildcat welcome week event Fred Meyer Night was unexpectedly cancelled this year due to a miscommunication between the incoming ASCWU officers and the Fred Meyer corporate offices in Portland. According to Jeffery Temple, director of corporate affairs at Fred Meyer, the corporate office was unable to make contact when they initially planned to start preparation for the event on May 5. CWU attempted to make contact with Fred Meyer in mid August, but they were unable to make out a plan, citing too little time as a major complication.

The event, which would usually run on “Big Tuesday” with the Bite of the Burg and other college events, would occur usually from 11pm to 1am with the store opening up exclusively to students or those with an up-to-date CWU connection card. Alongside generous discounts on items for the student shoppers, there were also free raffles and giveaways that would run throughout the night.

Dean of Student Success Richard Deshields is currently the advisor for the student government officers and oversees the activities and events that student government put on. When we spoke with Deshields, he said that this miscommunication error was was due heavily in part by the transfer of power between the officers. They have since then put a full-time faculty in charge of keeping communication with the corporate office.

“They determine that rather than throw[ing] something together that wouldn’t be well planned, that they would continue to move forward with the events that are already scheduled across the university for Wildcat welcome weekend,” Deshields said.  

“Fred Meyer’s been a wonderful tradition and they’ve been a wonderful partner throughout all the events, and through the transition of student government, as well as transitions of their advisor, that information didn’t get transitioned. So Fred Meyer was communicating with an officer and a number [that] didn’t have anybody else on the other end.”

The Ellensburg Fred Meyer is not the only store in the large retail chain that puts together an event similar to Fred Meyer Night. Other college towns, such as Boise, offer their own “Fred Meyer College Night”, with similar events and activities. University of Washington and the University of Oregon have had their own Fred Meyer night in the past as well.

In a statement made on Sept 22 by the corporate office, Temple said that they “really value the relationship between the school and the business” and that they have no reason to consider termination of the annual event.

This would have been the 13th year for Fred Meyer night, one of ASCWU’s most popular and longest running homecoming events. In prior years, there have been guest appearances by 88.1 The Burg and other school related clubs.