The UK Student Activities Board hosted a street fair Thursday evening for students prior to homecoming weekend.

SAB paired with the STAT/Team Wildcat to host the street fair on Oct. 5 on the Bowman’s Den lawn for students to enjoy food and festivities.

The street fair is one example of the many events held during the week to celebrate UK’s homecoming tradition and to bring the UK student community together.

“We’ve had really good turnout this year for all of our events this week. We think it’s really important to uphold the history and get everyone involved on campus,” homecoming liaison sophomore Brittany Shirley said. “We think this really brings a lot of people out.”

The street fair rallied pep for the upcoming football and allowed freshmen and other new students to experience the homecoming atmosphere and to find campus organizations that could spark their interests.

“I love the street fair because it was one of my first events as a freshman at UK to come to and experience homecoming in its entirety. It’s a really cool way to see the homecoming environment,” Homecoming STAT/Team Wildcat Homecoming Coordinator Emilee Holsinger said. “We love tabling here because there are all kinds of new, excited freshmen ready to get involved with organizations.”

The SAB and STAT/Team Wildcat provided music, food and festivities for free. Admission to the fair was free.

DJ Warren Peace played music for the event while local restaurants like Papa John’s, Cane’s and Crank and Boom catered food.

Students also enjoyed fun activities like inflatables, corn hole and a photo booth to take pictures in. The street fair also had an artist attend to draw students’ caricatures.

The SAB and STAT/Team Wildcat also provided two types of free t-shirts for students. The first shirt represented the homecoming theme for 2017: Not All Wildcats Wear Capes. The second t-shirt provided is for students to wear to the homecoming game against Missouri.

The street fair lets students take a break from academics and enjoy some fun with friends before midterms later this month. The event is one that students highly anticipate.

“I love UK and I love being a part of it. It’s cool coming down and showing out for my school,” computer science sophomore Lauren Bassett said. “It’s always the highlight of my semester.”

Students can attend and enjoy the NPHC Homecoming Step Show as the final event on Friday, Oct. 6 at 8 p.m. at the Lexington Opera House.