Every semester the Business Management degree requires its students to participate in the Leadership Class, who’s job is to learn about leadership through a major project. This semester, the students have chosen to work with the Make-A-Wish foundation and support nine-year-old Caleb who is battling a brain tumor.
“The class is extremely excited and we want to get everybody else excited and get this project completely taken care of 100% so that we can make sure this happens again next year” said leadership student Keri Gruber.
The Make-A-Wish foundation’s purpose is to grant the “wish” of a child who has been diagnosed with a life-threatening medical condition. And hopefully through that wish, the child will be given more hope to stay strong.
Their goal is to raise at least $10,000, and they are accomplishing it through various fundraisers. The most recent event the class organized was a Barbeque fundraiser, and more events are planned to come. A raffle drawing will be running all semester (the drawing date is Nov. 18), and they are selling bracelets. A bake and rummage sell are some others still in the brainstorm mode.
Each task and event has been carefully planned by the individual responsibilities of each classmate. Every event reaches a little closer to the goal.
“Just anywhere we can get out there and just try and get money collected and see what we can do with the people that we have and our talents” said Gruber.
All of the events will directly support Caleb and possibly other Make-A-Wish children as well such as 13-year-old Taylor who is fighting Cerebral Palsy. Caleb’s wish is to go to Disney World, and Taylor’s is to see a Taylor Swift Concert.
“It’s been really inspiring to see how much everybody else is willing to contribute” said leadership student Amy Hall, “you know this goal that’s going to make us feel so great in the end and helping somebody else out instead of just focusing on ourselves.”
The class has yet been able to meet Caleb due to his illness, but Hall says,
“We’re really excited ‘cause that promise is still on the table. And hopefully we’ll get to meet him.”
More events will be in the works and advertised. There are about 15 prizes for the $1 raffle ticket drawing, bracelets will be sold to the end of the semester and donations are always accepted.
For more information on the Make-A-Wish foundation, visit http://wish.org.
For more information on the Leadership class, visit http://www.tjc.edu/info/2004134/professional_and_technical_programs/77/business_management/3
