The Residence Hall Association hosted AIDS Benefit Week, a series of events aimed at raising money for Incarnation Children's Center, a skilled nursing facility in Manhattan for children diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Events included a benefit concert, a diversity speaker, a wine and coffee tasting, a benefit auction, and individual residence hall programming.
AIDS Benefit Week began on Tuesday, Feb. 19 with a concert in the McGinley Ballroom headlined by Emily McSpadden, a recording artist and graduate student in the psychology department at Fordham. McSpadden, who describes her music as "acoustic indie," plays the guitar and the Venezuelan cuatro, an instrument similar to a small ukulele. She has been performing and recording seriously for about five years but has been singing for over 20 years.
McSpadden, who wrote a song about a woman with AIDS called "Lola," feels strongly about the importance of raising money for AIDS Benefit Week.
"AIDS is a cause that can never get too much attention, and it's Fordham's obligation to the community that we do what we can for those in need, such as the children benefited by these fundraising efforts," she said. "To be part of an
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effort like this was an honor for me, and a really good opportunity for a lot of us to put time, money, and effort into saving the lives of the most vulnerable members of our surrounding community. The concert, which featured other Fordham students in addition to McSpadden, raised over $600.
On Wednesday, the PRIDE Alliance co-sponsored diversity speaker Mike DeStefano. DeStefano, who is HIV positive, spoke about his experience with HIV and encouraged students to protect and take care of themselves. Brendan Gibbons, FCRH '09, executive vice president, was impressed not only with the topic, but with the presentation as well.
"The message was great, but he was really funny on top of it," he said.
One of the most successful events of the week, the wine tasting, took place on Thursday, in a transformed McGinley Ballroom. Over 135 students were in attendence both to taste the various wines and learn about various wines. Expert sommelier David Baer was present to answer questions. While students enjoyed their wine, jazz pianist Ken Farnum entertained the students.
2008 Woodie Awards
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