The last remaining member of the dodgeball team caught the ball
between his legs, defeating his professional opponent in the final
showdown. However, there were no hard feelings because both teams
had the same goal ““ to help Katrina victims.
Raising $1,610 for hurricane relief, 17 teams participated in a
dodgeball tournament held by the Katrina Relief Committee Nov. 4 at
the Los Angeles Tennis Center.
Proceeds were donated to Habitat for Humanity, which provides
disaster relief nationwide, and the Dream Center in Los Angeles,
which is currently housing over 200 relocated families in the
area.
The event was part of an ongoing fundraising effort by the
Katrina Relief Committee, a coalition of student groups headed by
the Undergraduate Students Association Council, to help victims of
hurricanes Katrina, Wilma and Rita, said Ryan Smeets, USAC
Financial Supports commissioner.
“With this tournament, we wanted to raise money for those
most affected by the hurricanes,” Smeets said. “People
think that the hurricane is over, but we don’t want students
to forget that this is something that is still going on and that
victims are still feeling the aftermath.”
Though only 17 of an anticipated 50 teams participated, Smeets
said he was not disappointed with the turnout.
“We did everything we could to promote this, so I think it
still went very well even though we didn’t meet our
goal,” Smeets said. “Everyone who did come still had a
great time, and we still reminded students that even though (the
hurricane) happened two months ago, it’s still not
over.”
In conjunction with the tournament, the Kappa Delta sorority
collected toys for their sorority’s national toy drive to
help young victims of the hurricanes.
“Everyone donates money for food, but nobody notices that
the kids have lost everything too and won’t have toys now
that people are starting to return to their homes,” said
Stacy Chang, Kappa Delta philanthropy chair.
Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity’s team won first place in the
tournament, defeating Los Angeles Dodgeball, a professional team,
in a best-of-three showdown. Third place went to the Bruin
Republicans. Prizes were also awarded to Kappa Delta for most
creative costumes and UCLA Dining Services for best dressed.
Prior to the event, USAC held a barbecue reception in De Neve
Plaza for students displaced by Hurricane Katrina who have been
relocated to UCLA.
“We really are trying to make an effort to make (the
victims) feel at home, so we try to look for opportunities to bring
them together,” said Kristina Doan, USAC internal vice
president.
Third-year business economics student Jay Remsey said he joined
a team because dodgeball was a more involved way of assisting
victims than just donating money.
“I wanted to help out, so this was a really fun way for me
to do that,” Remsey said. “I’d much rather do
this than just write a check.”
By tabling at events such as Bruin Bash and USAC Welcome Week,
the Katrina Relief Committee has raised $2,827 so far this quarter,
including funds raised in the dodgeball tournament.
“We really made a big push to get different student groups
involved this year, especially on the Hill and the Greek community.
I love that so many students are coming together to unite under
hurricane relief and getting involved together,” said
Elizabeth Vega, chief of staff for the USAC internal vice
president’s office.
The Katrina Relief Committee plans to continue holding
fundraising events, including an upcoming benefit concert and
another dodgeball tournament, Smeets said.
“These people are still suffering, so we want to continue
to help them through it,” he said.