This year’s Winter Employee Celebration reached a near-record attendance of more than 3,000 employees, retirees and their families Feb. 17.

The annual event included a chicken parmesan and pasta dinner, held from 3 to 5:30 p.m. in Bartels Hall. Early dinner made it possible for families to enjoy daytime and evening offerings: movies at Cornell Cinema, bowling at Helen Newman Hall, and a full day of Big Red sports – women’s lacrosse, women’s basketball, men’s basketball and, for many, men’s hockey.

The Big Red men’s hockey team came from behind to win, 3-2, against Yale; women’s lacrosse bested Villanova, 13-7; and men’s and women’s basketball fell, 79-71 and 53-39, respectively, to the University of Pennsylvania.

At dinner, Crossroad the Clown and Canine Officer Chase kept children and their parents entertained, while students supervised a variety of activities.

“My thanks to Cornell Catering and the employee and student volunteers who helped with dinner and the children’s activities, especially during the last hour of serving when so many families arrived in advance of the hockey game. A special shout out to the students of the Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity. They took on everything they signed up for and more,” said Cheryl McGraw, event manager for human resources and employee celebration coordinator.

McGraw also thanked the Cornell University Police and Cornell Astronomical Society students for adding to the festive event, and sponsors CFCU Community Credit Union, Guthrie, Pepsico, Utz Quality Foods, DiBella Subs, Nissan, the Cornell Division of Human Resources, the Department of Athletics and Physical Education, and the Division of Infrastructure, Properties and Planning.