There are lovers of pi – the mathematical symbol for the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter – and then there are lovers of pie. And just about all the two have in common is the presence of a circle somewhere in their famous formulas.

But on Friday, more than 100 students of all ages, instructors and dozens of others celebrated this unlikely pair at the Clatsop Community College celebration of Pi Day.

The date for the festivities is officially March 14, because of Pi’s first three numbers: 3.1415926. But this year at the college, the Math Department chose to celebrate it on Friday, March 13.

As the afternoon’s fun began, singing voices filled the wide hall of Towler Hall’s first floor with recognizable tunes, reworded in praise of pi. Kids with the day off from Astoria public schools – it was parent teacher conferences – flitted from table to table to check out the pi-themed activities. Beading, button-making, crosswords and even outdoor pie-throwing were available for everyone to take part in.

CCC student Tamera Gann, 26, brought her daughter Hataya, 6, with her to help man the face-painting table. Gann volunteered as part of her math class, but hoped the blend of learning and fun would also rub off on her first grader and all the other kids that came.

“It’s great to see them all pumped up about learning,” Gann said.

Many students wearing the distinctive blue uniform of St. Mary, Star of the Sea School flooded into the “Pi walk” room, hoping for a chance to win their favorite flavor of pie to take home.

Outside the door, Chandra Waddell waited as her daughter Anandhy Waddell tried her hand at the circular marching game set to Pi music inside. Chandra Waddell said the event had been on her sixth grade daughter’s calendar for five years.

“She started coming in first grade, and she likes to come every year,” Chandra Waddell said. She was pleased to have the day off to be able to chaperone her daughter’s class from Star of the Sea, she said.

ALEX PAJUNAS – The Daily Astorian

GeriAnn Klaffke, left, a third grader at St. Mary, Star of the Sea School from Seaside, is the recipient of a Pi symbol face painting by Clatsop Community College student Kelly Roman, 20.Inside the “Pie walk” room, more than 100 pies were stacked in a corner, with flavors like pumpkin, pecan, marionberry, peach and even good old apple. Even a few cheesecakes appeared in the mix.

Adjunct math teacher Celeste Petersen organized the pie giveaway game, monitoring the music and the flow of students into the room. Petersen hoped the day’s light-hearted events might encourage hesitant students to try studying math.

ALEX PAJUNAS – The Daily Astorian

Holden Davenport, 5, picks out colored beads while putting together a Pi bracelet Friday at Clatsop Community College. Each color bead represented a number in the decimal notation and were dropped on to the string in order. “This is an enjoyable way to do something else with math. I really think it’s a blast, and I’d like to change people’s minds about that,” Petersen said.

Alexis Woods, 13, a seventh grader at Astoria Middle School, took a break from the Pi walk after winning her favorite – a marionberry pie. Woods said she came with her grandmother, Norma Overby, after her mom, a student at CCC, suggested it. Her mom, Angie Niemi, wanted her to come to the school to see what she might learn, Woods said.

And at that point, Woods said, Pi Day was a definite success.

“It’s a really cool way to learn,” she said.

Across the hall, more pies were piled high behind another table, and this time the round, buttery-crusted desserts could be bought by the slice for $2, a quarter pie for $3, a half pie for $5 and a whole pie for $8.

ALEX PAJUNAS – The Daily Astorian

Clatsop Community College student Kraig Hamar, 21, from Knappa, flings a whipped cream pie at an instructor outside of Towler Hall. Even the Phi Theta Kappa volunteers working the table had already stopped to take a sample of the wares. CCC student Brandon Whitus said he’d already tried a slice of peach pie, but wouldn’t be moving on to his favorite, marionberry.

“I have to watch my girlish figure,” Whitus said.

In a quieter back classroom off the main hallway, Devon Betts, 29, presided over the Pi Day crossword puzzle table. Betts is in a statistics class at CCC, and will soon transfer to Portland State University. He admitted he hadn’t known that such a day existed before coming to the college. But Betts saw how the younger kids, especially, were drawn into the playful activities.

“It’s cool to get children involved and engaged,” Betts said.

Betts said he made sure to try a sample of his favorite pie, Dutch Apple, known for its distinctive sugary streusel topping.

“I had my slice,” he said, pointing to a scraped-clean paper plate and plastic fork. “It was a good day.”