The event, which took place in the Veterinary Medical Center, had eight performances by various organizations. It ended with a silent auction to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, a non-profit organization that provides resources to people suffering from neuromuscular diseases.
Breanna Borg, a neuroscience junior and one of the organizers of the event, said the reason they chose that philanthropy was because of all the aid it provides.
“Muscular dystrophy is not curable, so they do a lot of things that aid in helping these people and provide a lot of resources,” Borg said. “(They are) a great organization.”
At one point in the evening, Borg announced it was time for the “Miracle Minute.”
As 60 seconds ticked by, volunteers wove through the rows of chairs in the audience and held out buckets to collect any change people could spare.
By the time the minute was over, $82.74 was raised. The previous year’s Miracle Minute raised $17.
“We had more attendants last year, but this year we had a really giving audience,” Borg said. “The Miracle Minute was awesome for me. We were able to raise over $80 in under one minute — in my opinion, that’s fabulous.”
Attendees also had the chance to bid on various gift cards and the grand prize: a Kaplan Test Prep course.
Several a cappella groups performed at the event. RCAHpella, Ladies First and Spartan Sur were among the a cappella groups present at the event. They each performed unique covers for the cause.
Human development and family studies doctoral student Zain Shamoon performed slam poetry with a touch of hip-hop after the minute ended. The spoken word artist read four different pieces that ranged from an upbeat song about cookies to a passionately shouted piece about appreciation for the arts in public schools.
Seven members of the MSU Breakdance Club showed off their quick and agile steps that had the audience clapping along.
English sophomore and singer Stefanie Haapala also performed with her own acoustic songs.
Armed with pots and tambourines, an Indian folk dance group gracefully took to the dance floor to perform. The group was one of the dances from the Coalition of Indian Undergraduate Students’ annual cultural dance show, Satrang.
Things took a turn for the hilarious when accounting junior Tom Gannon performed his comedy routine. Gannon competed in Last Spartan Standing last fall.
He incorporated the audience into his act, interacting with them by making retorts such as, “I can hear you, this isn’t choreographed, I can respond to you,” in response to a comment shouted from the audience.
Once the performances ended, attendees made their way to the back to see if they won their bids. By the end of the night, roughly $815 dollars was raised to be donated to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
The money will be used to research and aid symptoms of muscular dystrophy.
“I think the performances ended on a really upbeat note,”said nutritional sciences junior and an organizer of the event Aamir Bandagi. “It gave a hopeful message ending that way.”
