![Adding a tray of canned corn to the pile, junior Michael Collop assists in transporting donations for the Holiday Food Drive. The event, hosted schoolwide from Dec. 10-17, raised over 5,000 food items to deliver to the Parkway Food Pantry, helping several families in need. [The drive] is a great thing for us to do because you're giving to those who are less fortunate, and it helps provide for people who can't provide for themselves. [The] competition is always fun, too. It was fun to be in [social studies teacher Jess] Chazen’s class, because he always gets worked up over [the competition]. He made it exciting, and was always convincing us to turn in cans for the drive,” Collop said.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/feature-photo-unsung-2.png)
![NEW CHALLENGE, NEW TEAM MEMBERS: Every season, VEX creates a new game that robotics team members are faced with and have to build a robot to compete in. This year’s game forces students to create a robot that is able to stack rings onto mobile goals in order to score points. The change in games each season is something that robotics teacher Audrea Moyers appreciates.
“One of the things that I like about VEX is that they have a new problem to solve every year,” she said. ¨Even though the equipment’s the same, they have to analyze the game, and they have to come up with solutions that are unique that year. They are using their knowledge from prior years, but they have to kind of redesign a problem.”
As returning teams were faced a new game, some new teams and members had to adapt to a uncommon playing field and game.
“Three of our four teams were competing for the first time this year, and they had very different experiences match to match, so I think they learned a lot,¨ she said. ¨It’s hard just watching a video online to know how it’s actually going to be in person, so they all learned a lot about what gameplay is like, how to work with an alliance partner [and] how to adapt during the day to changes.”](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/IMG_9283-1-1200x800.jpg)
Eric Butler, lead singer of Mom Jeans, remembers playing house shows with Bart Thompson, Mom Jeans’ current guitarist, at his house in Fresno. Before Mom Jeans, Thompson was a part of the Fresno-based band Meet Me In Montauk, hosting shows and rehearsals at his house.
“When we played at Bart’s house, we just felt very at home. It was like a million degrees and we slept on the floor afterward,” Butler explains. “For the first third of the life of this band, Fresno was kind of where everything started and ended.”
Butler and current drummer Austin Carango created Mom Jeans back in 2014 during their time at UC Berkeley.
Butler shared his thoughts with The Collegian about the recent trend of popular musical artists coming down to Fresno, expressing his enthusiasm for the deserved popularity for the Central Valley town.
“Fresno is a force of nature and [it] is always going to be doing cool, interesting things. We’re always just tickled to play here and it’s a place that not everyone can make the time for and not everybody feels like it’s worth the effort,” Butler said. “It’s like ‘Fine, more fun for us.’ We’re always happy to be the hometown heroes and make Fresno feel seen. They always make us feel seen in return.”
The emo-rock band sang to a roaring crowd at Tioga-Sequoia Brewing Co. in Downtown Fresno, on Sunday, July 30.
People of all ages lined up decorated in Mom Jeans shirts, tote bags and other merchandise, trailing from outside of the entrance of the Tioga-Sequoia Beer Garden down Fulton Street.
Sunday evening served as the band’s final day of their Sad Summer Tour, promoting the release of their new song, “wassup;)” a re-released alternative version of the original song, “What’s Up,” from the band’s album “Sweet Tooth.”
Zachary Gagams, a Fresno State biochemistry major, voiced his enthusiasm for the Central Valley’s recent music scene revival after mentioning that various artists including Pierce the Veil, Pitbull and, now, Mom Jeans have performed in Fresno since March.
“I think it’s great. I feel like people bash on the [Central] Valley because people say that there’s not a lot of things that are here,” Gagams said. “But I think if you look hard enough, there’s definitely something here, and I feel like a lot of people just don’t give enough credit to the audience.”
Several Fresno State students were spotted in attendance, waiting eagerly to watch one of their favorite bands live.
“It’s my first time seeing them, so it’s really cool that they’re doing a special show for us,” said Rachel Matejek, a psychology major.
Star Ninety Nine, King of Heck and The Real Cheekface were the three different opening performers before Mom Jeans performed, each taking a turn at exhilarating the audience with alternative music.
“Crybaby (On the Phone),” a song off of “Sweet Tooth,” was Mom Jeans’s opening song as soon as they hit the stage, amplifying the crowd with one of their newer songs.
The setlist was a combination of classic songs from their earlier albums such as their first full-length 2016 album, “Best Buds” as well as newer songs.
The band also made sure to look out for their fans’ concert experience.
Bassist Sam Kless was seen throwing water bottles out to the crowd throughout the show, while he and lead singer, Butler, frequently reminded the audience to give the people at the very front of the crowd some space while others danced.
The sense of admiration and care was not only towards the people who attended the show but also towards the entirety of Fresno.
“It’s like a countdown, like how long do we have to wait until we can play Fresno again? It’s like a second hometown, there are so many family and friends here. Tonight really felt like a hometown show,” Butler said.
This story was originally published on The Collegian on August 4, 2023.
