Dartmouth's fortnight-long fundraising efforts for tsunami victims in Asia will culminate Wednesday evening in an event featuring dinner, entertainment by student performers and a silent auction. The Dartmouth Coalition for Global Health organized the event as a last-minute fundraising push.
The silent auction will include items donated from students, faculty, local businesses and athletic teams. Student performers have also offered their services free of charge. Shivani Parmar '05, a DCGH member and a coordinator of the event, described it as a large-scale campus- and town-wide collaboration between students, faculty, and Hanover residents.
Just two weeks after College President James Wright urged students and the community to channel their mourning into fundraising and awareness of the tsunami tragedy, the DCGH will return to Alumni Hall to bring campus tsunami relief efforts full circle.
Other student groups, including Greek houses, have also focused their efforts on fundraising. Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity collaborated with campus bands to host a tsunami relief concert Saturday. Sig Ep's concert raised $3,301, which was donated to the International Rescue Committee, according to concert organizer Matthew Brown '05.
Theta Delta Chi fraternity also hosted a party during the first weekend of the term, which yielded $1,200 in donations.
"It was an awesome, successful, packed show, and we raised a ton of money. Everyone had a fantastic time, and we managed to pack our house at an alcohol-free event," Brown said of Sig Ep's fundraising success.
In addition to organizing fundraising parties, Greek houses also worked a donation table in the lobby of Thayer dining hall. Organized by Psi Upsilon fraternity, the "Greeks Give Back" fundraiser for the American Red Cross raised $3,285. Chief organizer Jason Edgar '05 credited Dartmouth's Greek system with alacrity in responding to need and praised students for their generosity.
"[The fundraiser's success] was a tremendous testament to the compassion of the Dartmouth community," Edgar said.
Other events also raised money for tsunami victims, including an Aquinas House dinner Monday evening sponsored by the Dartmouth Healthcare Action Group and Alpha Chi Alpha fraternity and a candlelight vigil and fireside chat at the Tuck Business School, where tickets sold for five dollars.
Other campus efforts focused on education and awareness about the tragedy. Professors answered student questions about the tsunami at a panel discussion Jan. 10 sponsored by UNICEF Dartmouth.
While tonight's auction and dinner is intended to be a "culminating" event, Ramunto's Brick and Brew Pizzeria will hold a "Karaoke Sing-a-thon" Friday at 8 p.m., to raise money for tsunami relief efforts.