UB raised over $1,000 from students during a three-day fundraiser that ended Monday and will go towards aiding the children who were victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami, according to UB officials.
Mary Clare Fahey, who helped organize the fundraiser, said she is happy with its results. Though only $1,000 was raised from 18,000 undergraduates, she said that students proved their generosity by making donations through other relief funds.
"I was pleased in that I talked to a lot of students and many already gave through whatever religious organization they belong to, or through something like Wegmans, or directly on their own," said Fahey, the community service coordinator in the Leadership Development Center. "Considering it was three weeks after the fact, I'm not really disappointed."
Fahey added that over 300 students also participated in making a "remembrance quilt" that will be displayed in the Student Union and at both tsunami memorial services.
The first of two memorial services will take place Wednesday at noon in Harriman Hall in South Campus. The second will be in the Student Union Theater on Thursday at 2 p.m.
Both services will include musical selections, a visual presentation and a number of both religious and secular speakers. Either President John Simpson or Provost Satish Tripathi will speak at Thursday's ceremony.
Having a memorial service on each campus was important, Fahey said.
"All the health sciences students spend almost all their time (on South Campus), and it's important for this to be inclusive to the entire UB community," she said.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
