By Victor Dixon, Editor-in-Chief
There’s a new recurring character at Student Life events.
Those who went to Trivia Night in the spring and the Back to School Color Run last month may have noticed that a local business was featured on promotional T-shirts: Wizard’s Alley, a downtown comic book store at 114 N. St. Francis, helped sponsor the events.
Student Activities Director Josh Prilliman said he has developed a good relationship with the store and its owner, Brian “BamBam” Hunter. That relationship, Prilliman says, has allowed him to organize events that have an even higher degree of quality.
“They were transferring from Wizard’s Asylum to Wizard’s Alley, so we were probably the first event, with Trivia Night, to have Wizard’s Alley on anything,” Prilliman said. “They gave us door prizes and they helped us advertise, so we got to advertise in front of different people. And he was one of two sponsors for this year’s Color Run and gave us some money, which helped fund some of the stuff we were doing.”
Wizard’s Alley doesn’t sell only comic books. It also runs tabletop games, hosts weekly events, has food and drinks available for purchase, and offers a library of board games that customers can check out.
Hunter said he has a great appreciation for the value of community.
“I love Wichita, and Newman’s had a long history in Wichita,” Hunter said. “If I’m going to have a relationship with somebody where I support what they’re doing or help them out, I want them to have a good reputation, and as far the Wichita community goes, Newman’s always had that.”
This local business has a community of its own that is uniquely eager to welcome newcomers, said Prilliman, who has made a habit out of going to events there.
“You walk in, and it’s a lot immediately. You’ve got like six tables set up, there’s all this stuff going on around, and when it’s packed it’s the coolest thing ever.” Prilliman said. “There’s always somebody, whether they work there or not, that’s like, ‘Hey, what can I help you with?’ There’s no official door greeter, but all of them are ‘official’ door greeters.”
Hunter said that he hopes students visit Wizard’s Alley, which would not only be a way to give back to a local business and thank it for its help at Newman events, but also would be a way to make friends and build connections.
“A lot of gaming or comic books or any of these communities are about establishing relationships and having long-term relationships, and you don’t realize those things are happening while you have fun.” Hunter said.
PHOTO: Courtesy, Wizard's Alley
