Haiti support efforts are in full force on the
University of Colorado campus this week thanks to some students stepping
up to help.
A handful of students and groups are creating convenient and fun ways
to donate money for Haiti.
Students will have several options for donating or getting involved
in relief efforts including change donations and food drop-offs.
Drink for the cause
Feel like having a drink or five?
The CU student group GlobeMed is sponsoring a bar crawl, called Trek
the Bars, on Thursday night to raise money for crisis relief in Haiti.
For $6, students can purchase a wristband, good for drink specials,
free cover and live music at seven local bars: Juanita's, The Walrus,
Bacaro, Connor O'Neill's, The Draft House, Circle and Tahona Tequila
Bistro. Wristbands can be purchased in the UMC in front of Baby Doe's
from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday or at any of the
participating bars.
CU sophomore and Trek the Bars organizer Sarah Budisavljevic said
while the CU student chapter of GlobeMed focuses on raising funds for
Himalayan HealthCare in Nepal, they also support current causes such as
the Haiti earthquake relief.
"If there is a need we should be there to fill it," Budisavljevic
said. "This should be a way students can have fun and feel good about
doing it."
Proceeds from the wristbands will be split among supporting efforts
in Nepal, with the majority going to help relief in Haiti.
Happy hour
Start your weekend off right with a drink and a donation.
Students can stop by The Goose on the Hill from 3 to 7 p.m. Friday
for happy hour when the $5 cover charge and a portion of the bar's
proceeds will go to the Colorado Haiti Project and relief efforts. The
happy hour will include drink specials, door prizes and live music.
Guiseppi Marzelli, a CU senior and organizer of various Haiti relief
efforts, said it's not enough for students to feel bad about what's
happening. Students need to get involved in the relief efforts, he said.
"It kills me that people aren't helping out more," Marzelli said. We
have it so easy here on campus. "Our lives are so safe and easy, we have
no idea what these people are going through and the least we can do is
try to help out."
Marzelli and his fraternity, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, are also hoping to
provide convenient drop stations on the Hill for students to drop off
needed supplies, such as rice and beans or books in French.
Donations can be taken to the fraternity house or brought to happy
hour at The Goose.
Penny war
The Colorado Student Public Interest Research Group is sponsoring a
penny war to support relief efforts in Haiti Wednesday through Jan. 27.
CoPIRG is challenging student groups to join the competition by
collecting pennies for points. Any coin that is not a penny and bills
count against that group, taking points away from their final tally.
CoPIRG intern Cassie Gedbaw said the group hopes to raise a couple
thousand dollars, but the main goal of the penny war is to create more
awareness of the crisis and to give students convenient options for
donating to the cause.
"We're not just encouraging students to give pennies, but to send
support any way they can," Gedbaw said. "We think this is super
important and we want to give students the option to help people who
can't help themselves."
Students with donation jars will be spread across the Boulder campus
asking for donations, in pennies, hoping to collect the most points and
bragging rights.
Student groups who would like to participate can e-mail gedbaw@colorado.edu with their
information.
Donations during meals
CU freshman Christopher Atkinson began a program to raise money
through the Global Studies Residential Academic Program, and is hoping
to add a general donation jar in the Cheyenne Arapaho Dining Hall.
G-RAP program assistant Katie O'Block said Atkinson came to her
office wanting to provide the 200 G-RAP students with a convenient way
to donate to Haiti relief efforts. The program, a donation contest, will
award a prize to the winners in the form of free food.
O'Block said there are nine teams of 22 freshman, each with a
sophomore mentor, collecting money. The team that collects the most
money will get free dinner -- and it's no dorm dinner either.
"(Atkinson) has been involved in seeing through this whole program
and is providing a way for these freshman to help without putting
pressure on them to donate money they don't have," O'Block said.
All proceeds collected during the program will be donated to the Red
Cross's Haitian relief efforts.