A Tiny Idea Sparks an Awesome Fundraiser
Many thanks tþ ÑÂþllõgõ Ñ•tudõnt Allison Gyurich fþr her Ñ•hþrt but sweet “ImрðÑÂt a LÑ–fõ†ѕÑÂhþlðrÑ•hÑ–Ñ€ essay.
Allison dþõѕ a wþndõrful jþb describing hþw a raffle fundrðіѕõr impacted hõr life in a positive wðу. How ÑÂðn a raffle fundrðіѕõr impact your lÑ–fõ, or someone else’s?
Allison is a student at Michigan State University where she is a Kinesiology Major. Allison also stays busy as a member of the MSU Special Olympics volunteering club.
Thðnkѕ ѕþ much Allison, ðnd bõѕt of luck!
“Impact a Life†Scholarship contributor: Allison Gyurich
Yþu ÑÂðn hõlÑ€ Allison Gyurich’s pursuit þf a scholarship award bу ÑÂlÑ–ÑÂkÑ–ng the “sharing Ñ–Ñ• ÑÂðrÑ–ng†buttþnÑ• bõlþw.
Sometimes all you need is a tiny idea to spark an entire movement; a small flicker of hope in a dark world can grow and grow into a burning fire. This is what I strive to be as a member of Michigan State University’s Dance Marathon Team. Emerging at Big Ten schools across the nation, Dance Marathon clubs help raise money to donate to local and national Miracle Children’s Network hospitals. As ambassadors of hope for children and teenagers facing terminal illnesses, we fundraise and dance for the hearts who can’t, hoping to give them another day to fight.
Sporting the slogan “For The Kidsâ€Â, I became interested in this club after watching all of the miracles it helps to foster. Raising money all year in preparation for Spartython, the members works all throughout the semester recruiting new members and dancers, hoping to raise $40,000 for local children’s hospital. During my first meeting, it only took an hour of watching videos and hearing testimonies about this organization for me to realize that my gifts and talents of creativity would be useful to this cause.
As part of the event planning committee, I had big shoes to fillâ€â€and by shoes I meant ten hours of entertainment during our annual Dance Marathon. We were in need of creative ideas, incorporating both fun and fundraising, as the major purpose of the event was to raise the remainder of our funds throughout the event. There had always been a raffle in previous years, but their success had not been very consistent. As we were trying to come up with a new way to increase our raffle sales, we decided to offer an incentive along with the ticket. Knowing all of our participants would be MSU students and fans, we knew exactly what to offer: a picture with Sparty. After talking with our beloved mascot, we agreed that charging five dollars for five tickets, along with the change to pose next to MSU’s number one guy, would help to increase the sales of our tickets.
Because the entire purpose was to raise money for our local children’s hospital, the participants wouldn’t keep their half of the raffle, rather they could choose a specific “section†of the hospital to donate it to. From new games for the kids to hiring a face painter later in the year, the winner of the raffle could decide how their portion of the funds would be distributed. Throughout the event, we also featured stories form the children who would benefit directly from our raffle efforts, increasing our sales as well. In the end, our raffle raised exactly $4,450, meaning that around $2,000 went to our direct fundraising total, and the other half went towards the winner’s choice: weekly ice cream parties for the kids at Sparrow Hospital. Doubling the results of the last year’s raffle, there was something magical that happened because of Sparty this year.
Being a part of this organization has both challenged me and helped me to grow. It has challenged my creativity, causing me to think outside of the box, more specifically outside of the traditional raffle to help raise money for our little superheroes. From pictures with Sparty to being moved to tears with the testimonials from children of all ages, fighting for these kids has become an enjoyable and rewarding task. There are children who deserve the chance to attend a university and give back to others. They deserve to be fought for by people like me, people who can use their creativity for a greater cause, such as giving a three year old with cancer the chance to see another day.