Smooth Sailing for This Year's Soiree

After a year hiatus in 2020 because of the ongoing global pandemic, the University’s Campus Activities Committee (CAC) decided to right the ship and host the annual Salus Soirée, Nov. 12, aboard the Spirit of Philadelphia at the Delaware River Waterfront.

Setting sail year-round from Philadelphia’s Penn’s Landing, the Spirit of Philadelphia is one of the most unique event spaces the City of Brotherly Love has to offer. A private yacht fully equipped with an on-board DJ, a delicious buffet, numerous bars, a rooftop lounge, and incredible views of the Philadelphia skyline, CAC member and executive member of Student Council, Megan Kirkpatrick ‘24AUD, knew she’d found the right venue for this year’s Soirée — themed “A Night Under the Stars” — as soon as she set her sight on the ship.

"Our biggest concern was the venue,” Kirkpatrick said. “So I looked at some ballrooms and hotels in the area. But being that a lot of the students that would be attending, this would be their first big event at Salus because a lot of the people here have experienced the first year of COVID completely online and now, in our second year, we're getting back into those things. So I wanted to really do something different this year and reinvent Soirée. So that's why when I found the ship, I was like, ‘This is it. This is just something new. They've never done this before.’”

Giving Salus students a memorable experience together as classmates and a chance to step away from the rigors of studying and clinical work is always the goal of the Salus Soirée. Perhaps never more important than this year since social events for students have shifted to mostly virtual settings since March 2020. 

“I think that the overall general consensus was just people were excited to do something again, outside of Salus, with their friends, somewhere they felt that they could really, let loose in a sense, but just have fun and enjoy being a student,” Kirkpatrick said. “I think we forget, because we're in such intense programs, how to be a student outside of the classroom. So I think that this event really started the urge and the push for more of an extended social community at Salus.” 

“I feel like, right now, that's what we're lacking is the sense of being involved in events and wanting to do things because we're a new group that's experiencing grad school together. So I think that was an overall feeling too; one of ‘this has happened.’ Now, we're excited for what's going to come back and things that we're going to be able to participate in again.”

And, while vaccinations continue to take effect and we’ve seen some social restrictions lifted in certain areas of the country, planning an event such as the Salus Soirée during a pandemic still comes with plenty of challenges. Kirkpatrick and her CAC team were not about to be responsible for a Salus super spreader, so ample time was spent developing contingency plans and COVID health and safety protocols for those in attendance to follow.

“[The Spirit of Philadelphia] was used to planning events with COVID, around COVID policies, and things like that. So logistic wise, it was pretty easy,” Kirkpatrick said. “We told them our Salus policy with COVID, and we talked about theirs, and we made it work together. They were really great to work with in that regard.” During the planning process, the team tried to be five steps ahead with backup plans if needed.  

Kirkpatrick admits she was worried that her desire to have the event she helped plan run smoothly would prevent her from relaxing and having a good time, but once the ship departed the dock, the festive environment made it easy for her to join her fellow Salus students in the dancing and eating as the camaraderie increased and as they celebrated their hard work and commitment to becoming health science professionals.

“It was a great experience overall for an event that we sold out of tickets for,” Kirkpatrick said. “We planned for 350 and we completely sold out - it was well attended, well received. I think people had a great time and I honestly don't think I got one comment or complaint about anything.”