Fundraiser Event

After gaining a ton of momentum from the Rotary presentation the next step was to contact local business owners in the Greater Springfield area to discuss donations for our trip. While doing this, some of our group members spoke with Bill Collins, the owner of Spoleto's Restaurants in East Longmeadow and Northampton, MA. Bill was amazing throughout this whole process and offered to host a fundraising event at his East Longmeadow restaurant and cater it for free. With this, we distributed posters (generously designed and printed by Robert Charles Photography and Go-Graphics) advertising the event. We also collected various donated items to use at our silent auction. When it finally came time for the event, between 50 and 100 people attended and listened as we explained our trip and motivations for going to Rwanda. After the event, each member of our group also sent out an email to his/her family to tell them about our trip and ask for donations. From these efforts, we received more financial support, as well as donations of toys and books from someone who works at scholastic. To date, we have collected approximately $5,877 worth of financial donations from family, friends, and businesses throughout the country. We would just like to thank all of the people who have been so generous and supportive of our trip.