LV Life

Oaks becomes ‘Club D’ for charity

Jesse Rodriguez and Brandon Emilio attended Club D on Thursday night at the Oaks, an event sponsored by the Association Students Federation Forum. The money raised was donated for breast cancer research in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. / photo by Sylvia Castellanos
Jesse Rodriguez and Brandon Emilio attended Club D on Thursday night at the Oaks, an event sponsored by the Association Students Federation Forum. The money raised was donated for breast cancer research in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. / photo by Sylvia Castellanos

by Chrissy Zehrbach
Sports Editor

Oaks Residence Hall D was alive with music and dancing last week. The entertainment was a fundraiser put on by the Office of Housing and Residential Life to support the American Breast Cancer Foundation in the spirit of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which ends today.

Admission to the club was only $1, but all donations were accepted and $176 was raised from the 120 students who attended. Some students donated more than the $1 admission charge – there was one individual who donated $15 to the cause.

All donations will go directly to the Breast Cancer Foundation to assist in research costs.

“Together, as a staff, we wanted to come up with a large- scale event that would benefit all the students in a fun way but also in an educational way,” said program assistant Brian Ortega, who also served as disc jockey on the bottom floor of Club D.

“October is nationally recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and after doing some research, we felt it was the best organization we could contribute to,” he said.

The event began at 8:30 p.m., but got off to a slow start, mainly because many students did not get out of class until 10 p.m.

Club hours, however, extended a half hour later than normal quiet hours for the residence halls, allowing those who attended the chance to socialize until 11:30 p.m.

“It’s hard to work with quiet hours and student schedules. We had to find the common ground between the two,” Ortega said. “Housing was really flexible and understanding in working with us.”

Once students started to gather, it was the place to be. With a live disc jockey on both floors, and free candy and refreshments available, students were free to have a good time. Students danced or hung around outside to simply enjoy the social atmosphere.

“Overall it went really well, considering an event like that hadn’t been done in so long,” Ortega said.

This is not the first time the Office of Housing and Residential Life has put on such a large-scale program. According to Veronica Ramirez, assistant director of programs and publications, there was a similar program offered about eight years ago when she was a resident assistant. That event was held in the C building, and was a benefit for a different cause.

“Having such an event on campus gives the students something different to do than normal programs, and allows them the opportunity to do so in a controlled environment,” Ramirez said. “We provided a safe environment for students to socialize for an overall good cause.”

Program and resident assistants planned the event.

“This staff was really spirited about it,” Ramirez said, adding that if the staff is up for it, the Housing Office may put on another program like this in the spring semester.

Those students who attended Club D will be receiving a pamphlet in their mailboxes that contains more facts about Breast Cancer Awareness Month as a thank you for their support, and to let them know where the money is going.

“The purpose of programs is not just to have a good time but to have an educational follow-up,” Ramirez said.

Overall, the staff feels the event was successful because the students enjoyed themselves and there were no campus policy violations that evening.

“When there’s music and dancing,” said Stephanie Dreyer, program assistant, “it seems like everybody has fun and joins for the better cause.”

Chrissy Zehrbach, Editor in Chief
Chrissy Zehrbach
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