The Firebird Volume 2 (2016-17) | Page 5

Reports JCR President for students, staff and locals and we can only hope that another display will take its place in Durham in the future. The term was rounded off with our Informal Ball, titled “Forever Young”. Fancy dress ex- ceeded expectations and attendees were treated to a large Scalextric set, whack-a-mole and live music amongst much more. Epiphany term followed suit, with the new name of the college bar “The Greyhound” unveiled at a grey- hound-racing-themed BarFest. President’s Guest Night took place at Beamish Hall with a Ceilidh and live music from The Funkyard. Unsung Hero went to Ben Willis for his work on the JCR website with Frazer Levett receiving the Excellence in Leader- ship award for his time as Head Frep. Cheerleading, Men’s B Football, Random Acts of Kindness Society and Bar Committee also all picked up awards. The term was rounded off with our Charity Fashion Show which raised a phenomenal £6,500 split between Mind and the Stephen Gartland Foundation. Our final term somehow managed to top these few weeks with Grey Day leading the charge at the end of the Exam Period. A tongue-in-cheek theme of “Life’s a Beach” was accompanied by glorious sunshine to see over 500 students assembled on the lawn to enjoy live music and catch up after a stress- ful few weeks. Not to be outdone, the event was quickly followed by Phoenix Ball in Hardwick Hall, with over 800 stu- dents attending (100 more than any previous year). Attendees were treated to a “Speakeasy” theme with numerous fairground rides, live music, a casi- no as well as much more. After the entertainment at Hardwick, we were treated to a silent disco and Hog Roast breakfast on the lawn before a Survivors’ Photo at 5am. The year was rounded off with our annual George Palmer Memorial 7’s tournament, won by “Snow White and the 7’s Dwarves”. Every team took the spirit of the day as it should be taken. With good sportsmanship abounding and the sun shining, this was an event that truly epitomised the spirit of Grey. This year’s HLMs were awarded to David Jones, Alex Davies, Timothy Avni, Andrei Sandu, Ryan West, Layla Batchellier, Kerry Bromfield and Pup Rusby. It has been an honour to serve as President during my final year in Durham and the behaviour of the students has made me proud. I have absolute faith in my successor David Slade to do a wonderful job and see the direction in which he takes Grey next! JCR President David Jones looks back over his term in the Elvet Office The 2016/17 year has been a momentous year for record-setting within Grey College. From the Phoe- nix Theatre Company performing in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this Summer for the first time to winning in our inaugural Varsity against Colling- wood, there are a lot of reasons to be proud to be a part of Grey. A great bar team led by Izaak Beck and a successful Events’ team led by Will Farr have both independently raised the bar this year, and with the Fountains Hall redevelopment now fully underway, the future looks very bright indeed! The Freshers’ Helper team once again did a won- derful job in welcoming the new Freshers to the Grey Army. Led by Head Frep Frazer Levett, it is widely believed that this Freshers’ Week was one of our most successful yet, with international students and Postgraduate students given an even more personalised welcome. The Michaelmas term was filled with numerous formals and bops, all of which were well-attended and a great success. Under the leadership of Fireworks Guru, Samuel Bancroft, we were treated to a spectacular final Fireworks Display on Grey Lawn. It was an emotional evening to say goodbye to what had become a wonderful tradition TOP David Jones, JCR Pres- ident (right); Alex Davies, Financial and Commercial Services Officer BOTTOM College Mas- ter, Tom Allen (left) and Felix T. Phoenix, the College mascot 5