In the midst of the holiday season, the Elon New York City Alumni Chapter searched to find how we could make an impact in our own community in a robust way leaving behind an even larger impact than expected.
In the midst of the holiday season, the Elon New York City Alumni Board searched to find a way to make an impact in its own community in a robust way.
Through its local network, the chapter was able to foster a warm new relationship with Harlem Lacrosse, a school-based nonprofit organization that changes the life trajectories of youth through daily wrap-around academic support, mentoring, leadership training, college readiness career exploration, admissions counseling and lacrosse instruction.
The board knew we could make a significant impact through this relationship, and began brainstorming, with leadership from Andrew Bronsteen, Tyler Riccio, David Koski, Alex Jakaitis, Kristina Lee and Janay Tyson.
Through collaboration with the Harlem Lacrosse leadership team, the alumni chapter created an Amazon Wishlist that Elon alumni could use to directly purchase equipment and clothing desired by the Harlem Lacrosse players and their families. The clothing drive gained massive popularity and ended up being a tremendous success, resulting in 140 total donations, 342 total items donated, and $2,362.31 total dollars raised by Elon alumni.
This newfound partnership is a great example of how the spirit of Elon shines bright through local alumni, even in the midst of a global pandemic. Weeks after the final donation, the chapter received a heartwarming note from Richie Hurley, managing director of Programs for Harlem Lacrosse.
“To put it plainly, the clothing drive was a massive success,” Hurley wrote. “We were able to outfit students and family members from each of our 11 programs in NYC. There was a three-week span where we were receiving 5-10 packages a day to our office at WeWork Harlem. With our kids and staff not being allowed in school buildings, practicing outdoors is the only real opportunity we have to connect with our teams and continue doing the work we love. The donations you were able to solicit made it possible for our students to stay warm and safe and play the sport they love as much as possible. For that I am incredibly thankful and appreciative.”
These photos are a few of the gifts made by Elon alum being put to great use!
The NYC Alumni Chapter would like to thank everyone who donated and look forward to working together to become a source of good in the community. Long Live Elon!