Merry & Bright at Marywood University

Merry and Bright at Marywood is the university’s annual celebration of the Christmas season through festive programming, community service, spiritual opportunities, and student and alumni events, will begin in December continue through New Year’s Eve.

FESTIVE PROGRAMMING

The signature event of the Christmas season, Marywood’s Annual Christmas Tree Lighting, will take place in the Rotunda of the Liberal Arts Center on Wednesday, December 3, at 4 p.m. Festive music will be provided. The event is free and open to the public. The public also may view the Marywood Christmas tree during the normal operating hours of the Liberal Arts Center, Monday through Sunday, from December 3 to December 22, 9 a.m. - 7 p.m.

Additionally, Marywood’s campus will feature an outdoor Christmas display of the Nativity scene at the Memorial Arch on Adams Avenue, and the Motherhouse and Seminary Morgan Memorial Garden in front of the Learning Commons will be adorned with lights and seasonal decorations.

Sounds of the season will be broadcast by Marywood’s award-winning, student-run radio station, VMFM 91.7, which once again becomes Christmas 91.7 and continues its traditional community gift of broadcasting commercial-free Christmas music, 24/7. Christmas programming starts on Tuesday, December 2, and continues through New Year’s Day. Those outside of the station’s local broadcast range can stream it for free online or through the Tune-in app. 

The Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance is presenting several free seasonal concerts: 

• The Opera Workshop Performance (December 1, 7:00 p.m., Sette-LaVerghetta Center) will be a culmination of a semester-long study of excerpts from various operas, the Opera Workshop performance will feature 17 students in fully staged renditions of ensembles by Handel, Mozart, Rossini, Verdi, Copland, and others.

• The Evening of Strings Concert (December 3, 7:30 p.m., Marian Chapel) Marywood string students take center stage in this end-of-semester showcase, performing a wide range of solo works.

• The Guitar Ensemble Concert (December 4, 5:00 p.m., Marian Chapel) is happy to present their Holiday Concert – Meditating, Grooving, and Celebrating! This year’s program offers a festive journey through different moods and styles—meditating with Gabriel Fauré’s graceful Pavane, grooving with a vibrant Brazilian minimalist work by Paulo Porto Alegre, and celebrating the season with beloved traditional holiday songs. Together, these pieces create a program that blends reflection, rhythm, and joy, capturing the spirit of the year’s end in music.

• The Chamber Singers Christmas Concert (December 7, 2:00 p.m., Marian Chapel) will feature sacred and secular music by Cipriano de Rore, Josef Rheinberger, Michael Joncas, René Clausen, Jonathan Rathbone, and others. The performance will include several familiar and original carols. 

• The String Project Concert (December 8, 6:30 p.m., Sette-LaVerghetta Center) rings in the season with a festive Holiday Gala Concert, showcasing students ages 4–18 performing in string orchestras and class ensembles.

COMMUNITY SERVICE

Again this year, the Office of Community Service and Social Justice is partnering with Friends of the Poor & the Catherine McAuley Center: Partnership for the Common Good (FOTP/CMC) and Catholic Social Services to collect unwrapped gift donations for one of the largest parent/guardian-choice gift giveaways in the Scranton area. Last year, nearly 5000 children benefited from this program!  This event allows families who live at or below the federal poverty guidelines to walk through and find gifts for the children in their family in mid-December. Questions? Email: communityservice@m.marywood.edu

How can you get involved?

• Donate a NEW, UNWRAPPED gift (value up to $20) for any age range between infant and teenager. Donations due by Dec 11th to the Office of Community Service & Social Justice, Swartz Center for Spiritual Life

• Drop off your donation to one of the special gift collection bins that will be available on December 3rd, as part of the annual Tree Lighting & Christmas Celebration at Marywood. Collection bins will be located in the Learning Commons and the LAC from 4PM-6PM during the annual festivities.

SPIRITUAL OPPORTUNITIES

Marywood's annual Advent/Christmas Mass will be celebrated on Sunday, December 7, at 7:30 in the Marian Chapel. This will be a Candlelight Mass for the Second Sunday of Advent. This will be the last Sunday Mass of the semester.

Marywood will celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, its patronal feast, on Monday, December 8, with Mass at Noon in the Marian Chapel. It is a tradition of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to renew their vows on this day. The Marywood community is invited and encouraged to join the IHM Sisters at this special Mass on Monday, December 8 at Noon in the Marian Chapel.

STUDENT AND ALUMNI EVENTS

The Student Government Association (SGA) will host the Annual Christmas Office Decorating Contest on campus. The SGA will announce winners at the tree lighting on December 3. The winning offices will have their monetary prizes awarded to the charity of choice in their honor, as follows: First Place - $250, Second Place - $150, and Third Place - $100. 

The SGA also is sponsoring a “Letters from Santa” project for members of the Marywood community (including alumni) and their families, who request letters for the children in their lives. The deadline for requests is December 4. For more information, contact marywoodclubs@marywood.edu.

The traditional Breakfast with Santa event, hosted by the NEPA Marywood Alumni Chapter in conjunction with the Office of Alumni Engagement is set for Sunday, December 7, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m., in the Latour Room, Nazareth Student Center. Tickets are SOLD OUT for this event.

Also, the Marywood Alumni Association is hosting several off-campus events, including:

• Central PA Alumni Gathering, Tuesday, December 2, at 5:30 p.m.
• Alumni Meet Up at The Binghamton Club, Thursday, December 4, 5:30-8 p.m.
• Lehigh Valley/Hershey Alumni Gathering, at Grille 3501 is set for Tuesday, December 9, 5:30-8 p.m.
• New York City Alumni Meetup at The Met, Friday, December 12, 5:30-9p.m.

Alumni can get more information and register for these events at marywood.edu/alumni/events.