It was cold outside 20 minutes after midnight on Saturday, March 1st. But it was warm inside the Westfarms Mall in West Hartford, Connecticut, where hundreds of people were camped out waiting for the newest Microsoft retail store to open – and to win tickets to see award-winning country outfit Florida Georgia Line in concert – later that morning.
The day’s festivities were certainly worth the wait. That morning, Microsoft welcomed more than 1,300 customers, partners, community organizations and onlookers, who lined up to celebrate the opening of the newest New England store – aka A LOT of jumping and cheering when Hartford Mayor Pedro E. Segarra finally cut the rope.
Governor Dannel Malloy was also in attendance, as well as Xbox Expert Major Nelson, for a day of celebration and a billion giveaways. MSNE presented over $1 million in software grants to three Hartford based non-profits: Ability Beyond (who discover, build and celebrate the ability in all people), Compass Youth Collaborative (who offer positive youth development programs to support, extend and enhance students’ academic success in a seamless transition), and The Bushnell (Connecticut’s Premier Performing Arts Center). Krista Shaw (@k_shaw13) even won a brand new #XboxOne, just by tweeting with @MicrosoftStore! Other tweeters won guitars signed by Florida Georgia Line. @viktorxbelmont tweeted a picture of his Major Nelson-signed Xbox during Saturday’s community gaming event. “It was absolutely worth waiting 19 hours for the grand opening of the #MicrosoftCT #Teamwindows,” tweeted Jeremy DeRoy (@Jderoy91). But besides the partying, gaming and giveaways, the best part of the weekend was definitely this girl’s shirt:
