The Office of Mission and Ministry hosted its biannual Coffee House on Feb. 27, featuring a special guest performance by President Dr. Nyre.

Along with junior Andrew Casalino on guitar and vocals, Dr. Nyre provided guitar for Matt Kearny’s “Chicago.”

The performance came as a surprise to Coffee House attendees as only Casalino was billed on the program. When Dr. Nyre took the stage with guitar in arm, the packed audience let out a thunder of applause.

“Coffee House is the best, and we wanted to do something different for you guys,” said Casalino.

Dr. Nyre agreed.

“When you come to Coffee House, the audience is so supportive,” he said.

The chorus of the song provided the audience with the opportunity to sing along, and even though Dr. Nyre did not provide the vocals, he often mouthed along to the lyrics. The song ended with the lyrics, “Meet you at Radio City Music Hall,” a nod to the 2013 graduation that is taking place at the historic New York City landmark.

This wasn’t the only performance that shined. Junior Tyler Conroy performed an original song about Taylor Swift.

“Most people don’t know why I love Taylor Swift so much, so I wrote this song,” Tyler said as he introduced his song. The song spoke about Tyler’s struggle through problems of bullying, and the audience could relate as many started to tear up.

Conroy also collaborated with freshman Emma Kaahaaina on Christina Perri’s “A Thousand Years.” The duet perfectly harmonized, and Kaahaaina’s soulful voice evoked spine-tingling chills.

The Campus Ministries Jam Band performed an original song, in which freshman Molly Walsh took lead vocals. She dedicated the song to her best friend who has been going through rough times. Walsh also sang Jason Mraz’s “Remedy” with fellow Jam Band member senior Pierre Eliezer.

Spoken word is not the norm at Coffee House, so when senior Marlon Perez took the stage, he gained everyone’s attention as he spoke about his college life with no background beat. He joked about Iona College, saying, “Nah man, I don’t even own-a college.”

Graduate student Michael J. Esposito wrote an original song, “Hallelujah,” dedicating it to his ex-girlfriend who passed away after issues with bullying. The heartfelt, acoustic guitar performance left everyone with watery eyes and gained a large applause.

Other noteworthy performances include an original rap song, “Trapped,” by senior Andrew Musante, freshman Marie Kalb’s cover of The Ballroom Thieves’ “Vampires,” and freshmen Andrea Ashcroft and Jasmin Bayla’s cover of One Republic’s “Come Home.”

Senior Terra Shelton closed out Coffee House and performed an original song, “Seventeen,” which spoke about her past troubles with boys, as the chorus pointed out, “They’re nice when you meet/ but then they lie and cheat/ they only want to fool around.”

In between the four sets, members of the Office of Mission and Ministry informed the audience of their ongoing service projects. With a packed set list and an equally crowded End Zone, Coffee House was once again a success as one of the most attended events on campus.