Looking Ahead to Picnic Day 2020

The students behind Picnic Day are ringing in the new decade with a future-focused theme: “Envisioning Tomorrow.”

The 15-person Picnic Day board of directors announced the theme during a kickoff luncheon Nov. 20 at the Buehler Alumni Center. The 106th year of the campus open house will be held Saturday, April 18.

“We hope attendees will be able to envision their futures on campus here,” said Nicole Deacon, a senior statistics major and chair of the Picnic Day board of directors. She and Vice Chair Caitlyn Liu both said they committed to UC Davis because of what they saw attending Picnic Day as high-schoolers.

“It’s what made me fall in love with UC Davis,” Deacon said.

Deacon said the theme is also meant to inspire faculty, staff, alumni and community members to think about the ways UC Davis has changed and the ways it has changed the world.

The board also announced next year’s parade marshal: Jamie Peyton, chief of the Integrative Medicine Service at the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital.

“This nomination is such an honor, and I feel really grateful,” Peyton said, adding that the theme reminded her of advice she often gives students: “Believe in your dreams to make them the reality of tomorrow. The only limitation is our imagination.”

Liu praised Peyton’s work using tilapia skin bandages for animals with burn wounds.

“Not only has Dr. Peyton pushed for innovation on her own, but she also encourages students to think deeply and push boundaries every day,” she said.

Peyton and the directors also highlighted the sense of community that Picnic Day brings to campus, both on the day of the event and in the months spent planning it.

“The people, and the joy that we create for the community — it’s priceless,” Liu said. “It’s a place to call home.”