St. Valentine’s Day has been around since the Middle Ages. It’s celebrated as a day of love in commemoration of St. Valentine, or St. Valentines (more on that in a minute), who was martyred on February 14.

There have been three St. Valentines legends in history. All of them were Christian martyrs, as recognized by the Catholic Church, according to History.com. Another theory is that the holiday actually originates from the efforts of Christianization of the pagan celebration of Lupercalia, a fertility festival from sixth century B.C. Rome.

Valentine’s Day is celebrated throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, France, Australia, and the United Kingdom. In the United States, the average person celebrates by spending $165 in 2021, according to the National Retail Federation.

Student Opinions: Ideal Valentine’s Day Gifts and Favorite Part of the Holiday

Natalie Enzmann, a junior technology management major, says her favorite part of Valentine’s Day is “how happy people look during it.” She says everyone looking happy does not happen often and Valentine’s Day is the one day people are conversational.

She said her idea of a Valentine’s gift would be “somebody to do my laundry.” However, she also said she likes the cute stuffed animals, roses or the chocolate. “And I do like the chocolates but I think the best thing you can do for someone . . . I think doing things for someone is the best,” Enzmann says.

Jenny Maaskant, a senior cyber security major says her favorite part of Valentine’s Day is “seeing everyone appreciating each other.” Her ideal Valentine’s gift would be a picnic.

Keith Enzmann, a freshman at Lanier Tech and dental assistant major, says his ideal gift would be a Transformer.

Sara Roark, a freshman computer science major says that she likes the gift of experiences. For example, she says that she and her husband like to go ax throwing, hiking and eatery tasting.

Women in Technology celebrates

On the Dahlonega campus this week, students got an opportunity to decorate cookies, watch “Ratatouille,” and unwind as the Women in Technology organization hosted its first event of the semester.

Vice President of Women in Technology and sophomore cyber security major, Ada-Monique Arcinas, says there are WITs on almost every campus in Georgia. She says the parent organization is Atlanta WIT Campus.

Arcinas says, “We thought it would be kind of cute to align it with the fact that the second Monday is in the same week of February 14, so Valentine’s Day.”

She says anyone from any major is welcome to come to their events to learn about technology.

“Most of the time we try to include the general public… Women in tech doesn’t have to be just women. But when it comes to scholarships or anything like that it has to be exclusively women.” – Ada-Monique Arcinas, vice president of Women in Technology