Mercer Bears Battling Cancer to raise money for St. Jude's
Mercer Bears Battling Cancer (BBC), which used to be called Up ‘Til Dawn of Mercer University, raises money for St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital in Tennessee. The hospital’s focus is to treat children with cancer for free.
“Our goal at Mercer is to fundraise for the hospital and to provide money for them so that they can continue their mission and continue to be able to offer free services for their patients,” said Gina John, president of BBC.
Beginning Monday, BBC will kick off “Little Warrior Week,” a week of fundraising opportunities for St. Jude’s.
On Monday night, people who eat at the Margarita’s in Mercer Village can say they are with BBC, and a portion of the money spent on their meal will go to St. Jude’s.
On Tuesday, BBC will sell pieces of Duct Tape to tape a volunteer to the wall. The volunteer will stand on a chair in the Connell Student Center, and the more students who buy tape, the less likely the person is to fall once the chair is taken away.
BBC will be at a table in the Student Center Monday through Thursday selling raffle tickets for $1. Students who purchase tickets will have the opportunity to win gift cards to stores and restaurants in the area.
The week ends with Be The Match in Penfield Hall on Friday.
John said Be The Match is similar to The Red Cross. “But rather than draw blood they take cheek swabs,” she said. “And they see if you are a donor for bone marrow.”
BBC began last year after transitioning from being an Up ‘Til Dawn organization. St. Jude’s Up ‘Til Dawn is a national program designed for colleges to raise money for the hospital. It’s set up for larger schools, and John said Up ‘Til Dawn requires almost 20 people to be on it’s executive board.
“We’re just too small of a school for that type of thing,” she said. “And a lot of our officers are involved in other organizations as well, so getting 19 people on anything at Mercer is really hard.”
BBC may not have the official Up ‘Til Dawn title, but it is still affiliated with St. Jude’s.
For more information about the fundraising week or how to become involved with BBC, email President Gina John at [email protected]
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