It’s the Friday before Spring Break. What are you up to tonight? Packing up, preparing to head off for an exotic vacation locale? Heading to Walter Brown Arena, using the hockey game as a springboard to a night of celebratory partying?
I ask only because one of your classmates is trying to raise money to cure cancer tonight and he could really use your help.
“I had an idea and wanted to do something more,” said Mike Haddad, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences. “I’ve lived in Boston my whole life and grown up with the Jimmy Fund.”
His idea was a night of food and dancing, with all proceeds benefiting the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. Tonight, Haddad’s idea becomes reality in the form of “Jivin’ With Jimmy,” starting at 7 p.m. in the George Sherman Union’s Metcalf Hall.
In addition to dancing and music spun by Haddad’s cousin, professional disc jockey Scott Alias, “Jivin’ With Jimmy” will feature a limbo contest, raffle and what Haddad termed a “slave auction.”
“We’ve found a man and a woman to volunteer themselves as personal servants for the night,” Haddad said.
Haddad first went to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, the home and benefactor of the Jimmy Fund, in early September with his proposal. After meeting with Special Planning Director Ellen Berichon, Haddad began the difficult process of planning an event on a non-existent budget.
“I needed to raise at least $5,000 to get official Jimmy Fund sponsorship,” Haddad said. “Everything had to be free too, because I have no way to pay for it.”
Faced with needing rooms and prizes — every detail donated — Haddad first turned to CAS’ Core Curriculum. A former student in the program, Core agreed to co-sponsor the event.
“I helped them with a couple shows they put on last year,” Haddad said. “The co-sponsorship allowed me to rent Metcalf Hall for free.”
Haddad next went to John Suarez, the director of Buildings and Grounds for the GSU. After hearing the event was to benefit charity, Suarez agreed to waive the Metcalf set-up fee.
With the exception of the BU Catering Department, Haddad termed all University facilities “very supportive.” Despite his culinary difficulties, Haddad wanted to get food as enticement for partygoers, and was unable to arrange a deal through the University.
“I petitioned them in October, and they kind of strung me along for a while,” Haddad said. “In the end, they could only offer me a discounted rate, which I had to decline.”
By far the toughest part of the process, according to Haddad, was getting raffle prizes. After dealing with many companies “who did not appreciate getting my call,” Haddad was able to get donations from businesses like Barnes ‘ Noble, The Ninety-Nine Restaurant and Strawberries.
The Jimmy Fund sponsors about 250 events every year, according to Jimmy Fund Developmental Assistant Muriel Mathieu. Though BU and Boston College commonly host events, she says, it’s rare for a single student like Haddad to take such a strong initiative in raising money.
“Usually it’s community groups around Boston that contact us,” Mathieu said. “It’s not very common for a student to just contact us with an idea for an event.”
The Jimmy Fund, Mathieu said, is available to serve whatever role organizers need in event planning.
“It depends how familiar the people are running an event,” Mathieu said. “Some just call to inform us they’re hosting something and to send in proceeds, but we’re also here to offer advice or show someone how to run a silent auction.”
Though Haddad has never hosted an event of this magnitude before, Mathieu offered him high praise for the hard work he’s already done.
“He’s pretty much set on his own, been doing a great job,” Mathieu said. “We’re just serving him in an advisory role.”
“They’ve been there to answer my questions,” Haddad said. “They’ve let me do my own thing, left it at ‘You can come to us for help.’”
Tickets are $15 for students, $25 for all else. Haddad is also offering groups of 10 or more discount admission for $10 each.
“We’re going to have donation bottles on all the tables, so people can give whatever they can,” Haddad said. “I want to hit $5,000.”
That would make a significant impact, according to Mathieu.
“We’re a grass roots fund-raising effort. We make much of our money from penny collections and checks,” Mathieu said. “When you add $5,000 to that, it can greatly affect the amount of money going to Dana Farber.”
Haddad said he has lost friends and family to cancer, and while part of his motivation behind “Jivin’ With Jimmy” is personal, he said he’s not the only one who has had cancer touch their life.
“Cancer is one of those things that’s very prevalent, almost everyone knows someone affected by it,” Haddad said. “This is something we should fight against.”
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