If you were on campus the week of Nov. 18, you might have noticed the luscious aroma of savory sweets coming from the quad along with handmade beads and bags worn by Russell Brand on sale.

All these and more were in celebration of International Week, and Tuesday marked the day for the International Education Fair, which has been serving the purpose of raising awareness of life and events happening around the world.

Otis Evans, operator of the most popular tent of the event, sold international fragrances and novelties and offered GPA raising tips to those who asked.

It was no mystery why this tent was so popular. If the loud reggae music that filled the quad was not enough, the incense names pulled the attention of students. Some eye catching names included Booty Call, Black Magic, Butt Naked and Dragon’s Blood, none of which were named by Evans.

“Fragrance is international. Incense provides tranquility and meditation. Burn lavender for relaxation. Burn vanilla for when you work on homework. It’s uplifting,” Evans suggested.

Evans, a past tutor at San Diego City College and University of California, San Diego, believes in students’ bright future and strongly wants to help the quality of their education in any way he can.

“Bike or swim, watch your GPA go up and start retaining the information you’re studying, if you don’t retain it, you stay a mediocre student,” Evans stressed.

Evans will return to school and finish his education next fall, making sure to burn vanilla fragrance as he studies.

Next to Evans was a commercial real estate broker, Laura Lexemburg, who sold handmade necklaces, bags and hair scrunchies made by children in Uganda.

“I got fed up from giving to organizations and finding out the money was not going to those in need,” said Lexemburg, the founder and operator of SSUBIHUT located in Uganda.

SSUBIHUT stands for “house of hope,” where 7 nuns and 52 beds stay. These beds hold the lives of rescued Ugandan patients who tested positive for HIV and left to die before Lexemburg stepped in.

The operation started with 12 sewing machines purchased by Lexemburg, who then taught the patients how to sew and bead. Next, she purchased the product from them with her own funds, resold them in the states, then returned to Uganda to put the profit directly back into the hands of those who made the items.

“I do it because it’s the right thing to do,” Lexemburg confessed.

$30,000 has already been raised for medical equipment, and with the help of Lexemburg, a hospital is currently being worked on where 1.2 million people have already been treated all through the SSUBIHUT donations and purchases of handmade crafts. Lexemburg was sure to show the photo of Russell Brand sporting the SSUBIHUT beaded necklaces in front of her booth this year at the International Education Fair.

“We need to realize, what happens across the world, does affect us,” said Lexemburg, wishing to share the message with the Mesa students.

As the International Education Fair continued, more booths had much to share, including a Korean booth which offered free samples of traditional Korean rice milk and rice cake along with relevant cultural information.

“We’re here to promote all local Korean businesses in the area,” a booth attendee said. “Because there is such a large Korean community in San Diego, it is important to help support and spread awareness of the culture.”

Some of the Korean businesses being advertised were Zion Market, Manna Rice Bakery and Zion Beaute, the latter of which is known for their skin and beauty products.

As Mesa does not offer Korean language classes, this booth also offered the opportunity to further one’s language skills by promoting Language Door with a slogan, “Learn a language today, open the door tomorrow.”

Others that participated this year included the Latino Film, Peace Corps and Study Abroad. Mesa Japan Club even accepted donations to help fund the rebuilding of the Philippines. The fair continued by offering students the Passport Fair, Lessons from Abroad and Language Exchange.

Overall, International Education Fair at the Mesa College gave its students a huge chance to reach out in bigger ways and broaden their learning horizons. For more information on any of the presented booths, please visit sdmesa.edu.