UPEI Students Win
PEI Premier Pat Binns joined Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) Chapter President Shari Gass on January 14 to present University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) students with the CCFF's "Best Secondary Fundraiser" award. The award honours UPEI students for their creativity in raising money for the Foundation's Shinerama campaign, Canada's largest post-secondary school fundraiser involving students at 57 universities and colleges.
UPEI's success stems from a combination of hard work, and the school's foresight in capitalizing on Shinerama's 40th anniversary. In recognition of the milestone, the students created numerous imaginative fundraisers, most notably "40 Holes of Mini-Golf for 40 years of Shinerama".
"We were thrilled to learn we had won this award," said UPEI's Ryan McDermott, Shinerama and Orientation Week coordinator. "I think it's a real testament to our community. Although we may not have the highest number of participating students, we outperformed many large campuses, and collected more money then ever before."
"When the campaign began, students raised money solely by shining-shoes in exchange for a donation, on a school's designated 'Shine Day'," explained Lyne Kyle, Manager, Annual Giving and Donor Relations, CCFF."Over the past four decades, Shinerama has grown to become so much more.Students are now very creative, and organize pretty well any fundraiser they think will work in their community."
UPEI has been involved in Shinerama since 1977. The school enjoyed a banner year in 2004. Last fall, its student 'shiners' raised close to $15,000 for cystic fibrosis research and care. This sum almost doubles the previous year's total, and is the highest amount ever raised by the university.
In addition to a number of well-received events leading up to Shine Day, Ryan and his team solicited corporate sponsors to donate campaign items, helping to decrease event costs. They also invited the media to attend all of their initiatives.
"Come Shine Day, no one had any excuse to say they didn't know we were raising money for the fight against cystic fibrosis," said Ryan.
Students at the University of Prince Edward Island are very excited to receive this honour. Although Shinerama 2004 has just wrapped up, UPEI students are already looking at ways to better their success in 2005.
