THE INDEPENDENT
TO UNCOVER
NEWSPAPER SERVING
THE TRUTH
NOTRE DAME, SAINT MARY’S
AND REPORT
AND HOLY CROSS
IT ACCURATELY
VOLUME 59, ISSUE 71 | MONDAY, APRIL 14, 2025 | NDSMCOBSERVER.COM
ND to sell alcohol at sporting events Observer Staff Report
Notre Dame announced Friday that fans w ith general admission tickets w ill be able to purchase alcoholic beverages at concession stands in Notre Dame Stadium, Purcell Pav ilion and Compton Family Ice Arena for football, hockey and basketball games. Sales w ill begin in the fall w ith the upcoming 2025 football season. “This expansion w ill prov ide for a modern fan experience, consistent w ith other professional and collegiate stadiums and venues throughout the nation,” the Universit y’s press release reads. A 2023 Associated Press
poll found that 80% of Power 5 conference schools had begun to sell alcohol in public areas of their stadiums. Indiana Universit y began selling alcohol at games in 2019, and the Universit y of Michigan began to do so this past season. Prev iously, the consumption of alcohol in these venues was prohibited for fans w ith general admissions tickets. Premium ticket holders had already been able to purchase alcoholic beverages in private areas. “Notre Dame is committed to promoting responsible consumption and ensuring a safe and enjoyable env ironment for all attendees,” the press release concluded.
Annual edition of The Shirt revealed By AVABELLA MITRANO News Writer
The Shirt Project unveiled the 36th edition of The Shirt for the 2025-2026 football season on Friday. Fr. Pete McCormick emceed the event on Librar y Law n, as he played a variet y of games w ith the audience and introduced student groups like Glee Club and Irish Dance Club. The event hosted free food trucks, law n games and a giveaway table where students could guess the color of the shirt to receive corresponding green, blue or gold merchandise. According to unveiling coordinator Katherine Williams, half of the proceeds from The Shirt go to The Shirt Charit y, which helps students cover unexpected medical expenses, while the rest of the proceeds support student groups at Notre Dame. Leading up to The Shirt’s
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Holy Half attracts record number of runners
unveiling, the committee hosted student events to promote The Shirt’s cause. “We’re getting people just to do random acts of kindness, call their friends, make little popcorn bags and again, just spread the message of The Shirt that really helps to fund our student groups here on campus,” Williams said. Williams noted the unveiling is The Shirt Project’s biggest event and that planning begins at the start of the second semester, after The Shirt has been designed. To plan the event, the committee coordinates w ith volunteers, contacts student groups, reaches out to food vendors and arranges stage equipment. “The entire committee makes it really easy. Ever ybody’s w illing to help out,” Williams said. Unveiling coordinator Frances Ubogu explained see SHIRT PAGE 4
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SOPHIA TRAN | The Observer
The first wave of runners crosses the starting line near the Stepan Center on Saturday morning. Participants circled the Notre Dame campus, running two loops before completing the course. By SOPHIA TRAN Associate News Editor
As the sun peeked over the horizon on a cool Saturday morning, over 2,000 runners assembled at the starting line of the 20th annual Holy Half Marathon. The half marathon and 10K run began at 8 a.m. on Saturday when the first wave of runners set out from the starting line near Stepan Center. Seniors Mar y Bridget Shaughnessy and Elizabeth Stone, co-directors of the marathon, oversaw a majorit y of the event operations. As students coming from Notre Dame and St. Mar y’s, respectively, both Shaughnessy and Stone discussed the importance of promoting this event to the tri-campus communit y. “The Holy Half was started 20 years ago by students, and it’s been carried on by students ever since,” Stone said. “We work w ith a lot of Notre Dame partners and local communit y members, yeah, but all of
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the boots on the ground are students.” In addition to the student communit y, the organizers also discussed how the Holy Half’s participation has expanded over the years to include more indiv iduals outside of the tri-campus communit y. Shaughnessy noted one runner even f lew all the way from A labama to Notre Dame, for the first time, just for the race. She also noticed many alumni and parents jogging alongside student runners. Beyond seeking to unite different communities w ithin Notre Dame, the Holy Half leaders also prioritized raising money for various organizations. According to the co-directors, the planning committee worked w ith a variet y of new partners to sponsor both events and materials distributed during the marathon. “Girls on the Run is one of our beneficiaries, and they run a program w ith third to fifth graders,” Shaughnessy said. “You teach them
running, or things like positive attitude. [Girls on the Run w ill] bring some of their runners in to cheer on, so it’s really nice to have their young girls cheering on, getting excited about their ow n race in May.” In addition to Girls on the Run, other beneficiaries, such as Power Crunch, sponsored granola bars for the runners, and the co-directors noted many other groups contributed to the overall marathon proceedings. On top of these collaborations, funds raised through runner registration were also given to charit y. The event partnered w ith Girls on the Run Michiana, Education Bridge and the Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation. With a record-breaking number of runners this year, Stone and Shaughnessy relied heav ily on their team and communit y to execute the marathon. The Holy Half core team consists of
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see HOLY HALF PAGE 4