They flit around campus during finals week, wings twinkling in the sun. You might see them on foot, pulling a wagon filled with treats, or catch them flying by (albeit on a golf cart, at only 12 mph).

They are the campus snack fairies. Instead of fairy dust, they sprinkle fruit snacks, string cheese, chips and other treats. More than that, they spread kindness, goodwill and resources during a week when students are stressed out and struggling.

The program began in 2019 after a brainstorming session in Prevention Services.

“We were reviewing ideas for finals programming,” recalled Emily Anderson, a former Prevention Services outreach and resilience coordinator. “We were looking for programming that would focus on supporting the students but also create opportunities to engage in a less formal format.

“What are those things that always get students engaged and interested? Food is always that.”

The Sweet Tooth Fairy

Anderson used to serve as snack fairy commissary. She went to the Food Lion on Western Boulevard and filled carts with hundreds of sweet and savory snacks. Some were on the healthier side, such as beef jerky and trail mix; however, she added a carefully curated selection of “throwback snacks” on the advice of Prevention Services’ mental health ambassadors, who had researched how nostalgia boosts confidence and self-esteem. Students will zero in on Dunkaroos, Gushers, Entenmann’s Little Bites and other sugary treats.

“The students definitely will grab those and be like, ‘Oh, I remember eating these when I was in elementary school. I haven’t had them since then.’ And it’s like, ‘Yeah, you’re about to find out why,’” Anderson said of the preservative-packed snacks. “But they still get excited. So we try to pick some of those things, too, just to add that little bit of fun.”

At first the fairies flitted around the libraries, but soon they realized that students go to other places to study or take a break. Now the fairies also visit Stafford Commons, the Court of North Carolina and other sites where students are likely to congregate.

The students light up when they see you, especially when there’s a whole group of us.

People who have never encountered the snack fairies before are understandably confused, even suspicious.

 “There have been a couple of times when I’ve tried to do it by myself or with one other person, and it does not have the same impact when you’re the lone fairy,” Anderson said. “It seems less legitimate. People question you a little bit more. I make sure to wear my name tag on those days.”

But confusion soon gives way to excitement.

“The students light up when they see you, especially when there’s a whole group of us,” said Dan Passonno, a health educator at Campus Health who got his fairy wings in spring 2023 and has donned them every semester since. “It’s even more special when students know who you are. It’s exciting to have that connection because it can be a very high-stress time for them, but it puts a smile on their face.”

Bibbidi Bobbidi Book an Appointment

What’s sweeter than candy and miniature muffins? Information.

Along with snacks, the fairies dole out fliers. Those might contain specialized information such as the best foods to eat during study sessions, but fairies also carry handouts on services Campus Health and Prevention Services offer beyond finals weeks. When Passonno hands out snacks, he encourages students to use the campus resources designed for them.

“If students are feeling under the weather, I can give a little nudge: ‘Hey, we have a Campus Health pharmacy.’ ‘Hey, you can schedule an appointment at Campus Health,’” he said.

For some students, this is the first time they hear about these resources, highlighting the importance of the snack fairy program and similar outreach efforts.

“There have been a lot of times where I am doing an event and we’re talking about physical therapy or gynecology — or Soo Uhm, one of our registered dietitians, and I are doing a breakfast on the go,” Passonno says. “And then we tell students, ‘You know, you get two free nutrition counseling visits per year.’ They don’t know that, and then all of a sudden, they are Googling it, and they’re like, ‘I’m going to schedule my appointment right now.’”

It’s difficult to calculate how many students start visiting Prevention Services and Campus Health because of such events, but both Anderson and Passonno said they are integral to outreach — and worth the effort.

“Even if it’s just one student that day, that means everything to that student. They’re getting the care they need and deserve,” Passonno says.

Students Do Believe in Fairies

Anderson and Passonno have been dressing up as fairies long enough that students recognize them — in fact, students were the ones who said they should dress up.

“We didn’t initially start out wearing wings, but then the students actually told us we needed to walk the walk, for the lack of better words,” Anderson said. The fairies started wearing wings in 2020. (The suggestion they wear tutus was less well-received.)

Now when the volunteers travel around campus, usually four or five of them at a time, they will hear students exclaim, “I love the snack fairies!”

The program is a favorite for Passonno and the other fairies for the joy it brings a stressed student or the relief it brings a hungry one. It means they end the semester on a high note.

“It’s something I look forward to every finals week,” Passonno says. “We’re also tired at the end of the semester, but this gives us a rush of excitement and endorphins because that’s what it’s all about: We’re here for the students. We’re all looking at the finish line; let’s get to the end of the semester together.”