Rendering shows plan for fire pit outside Lane Hall. Courtesy | Hoerr Schaudt

The 2025 senior class gift will be an outdoor fire pit, the Legacy Board announced Oct. 4.

The gas-powered fire pit will be located on the south quad outside Lane Hall. Faculty and students will be able to use it to warm themselves as they hold outdoor classes, study, and host events.

“The Legacy Board is very excited about a new space on campus for gathering, community, making use of the space that is already the south quad that is often underused, and making that a new space for gathering,” said Braden VanDyke ’21, associate director of alumni relations.

College President Larry Arnn delivered remarks at the gift unveiling ceremony and said the firepit will add beauty to an already beautiful campus.

“You will be connected to this college for the rest of your life, and we’ll be proud of you,” Arnn said.

Legacy Board member and senior Micah Hart said the board hopes to give a gift that builds community on campus.

Hart said after years of being told “no” to in-person activities in high school due to COVID, Hillsdale told the current senior class “yes” when its members arrived as freshmen.

“Our senior class left high school with a fractured sense of what it means to be in community, as schools shut down and classes were moved online,” Hart said. “We, however, walked onto a college campus where community wasn’t denied, but rather was a must.”

Hart said with the main quad currently under construction, students are lacking community gathering spaces. He said the Legacy Board hopes the senior gift will make up for that.

“As we await these new developments, it is important that we ensure that there are additional spaces for students to gather together,” Hart said. “Although our buildings and green spaces change, our community doesn’t have to.”

According to Chief Administrative Officer Rich Péwé, construction on the project could begin as early as this fall.

Péwé said the class gift is one of two firepits the college plans to install on the south quad. The Legacy Board aims to raise $15,000 for the project, but the total project will cost closer to $50,000, according to Péwé.

“I think the senior class gift will be a nice cozy area for students to gather on campus,” Senior Olivia Michiels said. “I’m sure it will become a beloved study spot soon.”  

Senior Maggie Baldwin said she is excited for the firepit to be installed.

“I’ve always wanted one, and I thought ‘the Legacy Board wants what I want,’” she said. “I hope they put the firepit on that one stump that I always trip on.”

Arnn said the project will connect current seniors to the college and he hopes they will return to campus after graduation to see the completed product.

“Thank you for the gift. It’s really great,” Arnn said. “Come back and I’ll buy you a marshmallow.”