UNC alumni are showing the nation that Tar Heel pride does not stop after graduation — it continues forever.
UNC graduates continue their Tar Heel pride by joining together for almost every basketball and football game at “gamewatches,” hosted by Carolina Clubs at bars across the country.
“The crowds for Duke games usually vary from 300 to 500 people,” Kenny Monteith, a co-chairperson of Atlanta Carolina Club alongside Raquel Hudson, said.
Monteith said people from all ages fill the upstairs part of Hudson Grille Midtown in Atlanta, creating a replica of the Smith Center experience as they go through all the requisite emotions — nerves, anger, happiness and frustration — during the game.
Carolina Clubs across the nation attempt to recreate this feeling for alumni. Farther north, Colin Scott, co-chairperson of Chicago Carolina Club, is watching the same games with his group.
“Instead of getting on a plane and watching the game on Franklin Street, this is kind of our way of doing that here without leaving Chicago,” he said. “It’s a fun way for folks to extend the college experience a little bit more and enjoy Tar Heels’ favorite pastime, Carolina basketball.”
Boston Carolina Club President Aime Goldberg Macdonald echoed the sentiment.
“Whether it’s Bojangle boxes, pom-poms or Blue Cups, it’s something that kind of connects and bonds people together,” she said. “You’re singing together and high-fiving. We’re clapping, doing the Tar Heel chant and at the end of the game we gather and ‘Hark the Sound’ together.”
