One of the long-standing traditions that Willamette students participate in is dunking their friends in the Mill Stream on their birthday. This event has been banned many times throughout Willamette’s history for numerous reasons. In 1952, it was deemed unsafe to dunk or bathe in the stream due to pollution, it was banned in 1949 for violence, and in 1934 and 1955, it was banned to dunk people as a blue Monday punishment, a day that students dedicated to repaying bets placed regarding Freshman Glee. Nowadays, however, this tradition finds itself in more danger of dissolution than it was in its prohibited years, as students are simply losing interest.
Kat Bowyer (’26) had a couple concerns regarding cold temperatures in the mill stream as well as the leeches that inhabit it from time to time. For these reasons listed, they did not participate in the tradition during their first year. During their second year however they decided to join the fray and take the plunge on their birthday in April of 2024. The deciding factor in their participation was the support of friends, one of which was getting dunked with them, as their birthdays were close together. They did not imagine the experience for themselves when they first came here, but afterward stated that they “definitely think that it is a fun way to be a part of Willamette history.” Having decided to participate after previously opposing it, they found themselves recommending it to other students, saying that “if they are comfortable and interested then [they] would recommend the experience to others.”
Colin M Davis (’26) brings a fresh perspective to the tradition, as he was dunked in the Hatfield Fountain (commonly referred to as the Chicken Fountain) instead of the Mill Stream. After being dunked during his first year on his birthday, Davis said that the experience made it feel like he was “a little bit more included in the Willamette community during [his] first year.” Another aspect of Davis’ experience that contrasts with Bowyer’s is the fact that Davis was not aware of their friends' plan to dunk him in the water. Instead of giving Davis time to mentally prepare for an ice-cold plunge, his friends calmly and inconspicuously took the things out of his pockets before they ceremoniously dunked Davis in the water.
Students who hear of the tradition and choose not to participate find other ways to connect to the campus and its history. On his birthday, Keegan Stershic (’26), chooses to engage in a similar but more personal tradition involving the Mill Stream. Saying that he prefers to instead “sit by the Mill [Stream] with friends and reminisce on another year well-spent.” By taking the tradition provided and choosing to alter it to better fit his personal preferences, Stershic is connecting to our campus’s history in his own unique way. Examples such as this illustrate that maybe the importance of tradition lies not in the action itself, but in its effect of connecting students through shared experiences.
With birthday dunkings on their way out, they leave behind the history of students past and present, their shared experience connecting them to something bigger than themselves. The tradition might not be for everybody, but for many who have taken that daunting step into frigid waters, the story was worth the moment of temporary discomfort.