Coin de France meets every Monday at 5 p.m. at the Breeze Thru Cafe. Find them on Facebook!

At the Breeze Thru Café in Michaelsen Hall, Central’s French club meets to explore the various facets of the French culture.

Most of the members of the club are studying French, but the club is open to anyone interested in French culture and language.

“We aren’t just for French majors or people taking the classes,” club president Ashley Puz, senior French and political science major, said. “Anyone can join.”

The club’s official name is “Coin de France,” which means “corner of France.”

When it comes to their activities, the club does not limit themselves to France.

“We are trying to be more focused on francophone countries this year,” Puz said.

A francophone country is any country that speaks French, regardless of the regional language differences.

Algeria and the Caribbean Islands are francophone countries.

“Even though they speak the same language, it is completely different,” Puz said.

According to Puz, the cultures differ greatly between the countries. The French club hopes to research the different cultures to broaden the scope of their club.

During the fall quarter, the club is focusing on France. In the winter and spring quarters, they will introduce more francophone countries.

This past week, the club explored the food side of the French culture by enjoying chocolate fondue and sparkling cider. Students indulged in chocolate covered bananas, marshmallows and strawberries.

Club Secretary Ellisa Griffin, a senior French and communication double major, says that the food events are her favorite, and that they really draw people to the club.

“If you have an interest in French, the culture, or anything related, you can join,” Puz said.

Though the club is not affiliated with any national organization, it does not stop the club from hosting multiple events and traveling outside of Ellensburg.

One of Puz’s favorite trips was to a shop on Capital Hill in Seattle, where the club was taught how to make macaroons, a small confection with sweet ganache, buttercream or jam smooshed between two colorful cookies.

“We spent the afternoon making three different kinds of macaroons,” Puz said.

In the future, Coin de France hopes to make a trip to Seattle to visit a crêpe restaurant. They would also like to visit a few French grocery stores to taste authentic food.

Griffin’s favorite activity has been the Taboo nights. On those nights, the club gets together and plays the word association game, only in French.

“I got to use my favorite word, ‘pamplemousse,’which is French for grapefruit,” Griffin said.

The club also hosts a movie night every other week in Black Hall.

Currently, they are watching French horror films to get into the Halloween spirit.

Coin de France is an active participant in Central campus events. Last year, club members helped put on a production of the French play, “Fables de La Fontaine,” for the World Languages Day celebration. The club has also helped with the play, “L’Homme en animal” which, translated, means “human animals.”

Club Treasurer Lyndsey Burkette, a senior French major, helped by creating the masks worn by the actors.

Burkette, an art minor, sculpted the masks and hand painted them. The masks depicted various animals such as a fox, wolf and frog.

Burkette’s masks won the Creative Expression Best Presentation Award at Central’s Symposium On University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE) last year.

A few of the club members have traveled abroad to get first hand experience with French culture.

Griffin spent an academic year in the small city of Grenoble, in southeastern France, which is near the French Alps.

Griffin mentioned the amazing food, specifically the cheeses, and also the French people, as some of her favorite things about living in France.

“I feel drawn to their ‘take life as it goes’ approach,” Burkette said.