For Siena College’s annual Charity Week, senior Brianna Moore and junior Courtney Lynch co-chaired, with assistance from members of the Student Events Board, a week of events to benefit the Catie Hoch Foundation of Clifton Park.
The students wanted to raise money for a foundation or charity that would be most affected by the $15,000 that they planned to raise. They settled on the Catie Hoch Foundation after talking to Gina Peca, who works with the foundation, which is dedicated to helping children while they are in treatment for cancer.
We chose this foundation because we could sense the sincerity in Gina’s voice when she discussed with us everything the foundation does to help children with cancer, Brianna Moore said.
The students raised $15,850, the highest amount ever raised during a Charity Week at Siena. They planned events that they thought would bring in the highest number of participants, including a trip to a Broadway show, `Pie Your R.A.,` Donate-a-Meal, a charity auction and Bingo Night. The week culminated with a wine tasting, which sold out.
The foundation is named for a 9-year-old Clifton Park girl who lost her battle to neuroblastoma, a rare and aggressive pediatric cancer.
`We were so touched and inspired by Catie’s story that we knew right away this would be the foundation we wanted to raise money for,` Lynch said.
`We were determined from that point to work together and make a difference like we’ve never done before,` Moore added.
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