News Article

Knights, Setons Have a Ball Supporting Charity

The hard work that Gonzaga’s Knights and Setons sophomore service clubs have done throughout this school year all paid off on Saturday, Dec. 6, when the group of 60 young men and women presented Center Pointe, a local Spokane charity, with a check for more than $70,000. The donation was the largest sum raised by any group of Knights and Setons in Gonzaga’s history.


At this year’s annual Charity Ball, a formal dance held on campus by the Knights and Setons, tears and screams overwhelmed the groups’ members when they learned the of the total.

The Knights of Gonzaga is an organization made up of 30 male students; the Setons is a group of 30 female students. Both groups work together annually to help raise money for a specified charity.

“Center Pointe is a local Spokane charity where adults with mental and severe physical disabilities can come during the week to participate in arts and crafts classes including woodshop and ceramics,” said Maggie Cech, president of the Setons. At Center Pointe, these adults are accepted unconditionally -- something they rarely see experience.

“They are so kind and accepting of the world around them, even though the same world often shuns and rejects them,” Cech said.

Although the entire group of 60 students was involved in choosing Center Pointe as the recipient of their charity this year, three students in particular had the biggest job. Sarah Dolphin and Megan Higgins are the service chairs for the Setons while Justin Tai is the service chairs for the Knights.

“We all assisted in narrowing down the charity options to three, and presented them to the entire group,” Dolphin said. “Among all of us, we picked Center Pointe as our charity of the year.”

Gonzaga’s Knights and Setons can’t say enough good things about their charity of choice, Dolphin said.

“Center Pointe offers a comfortable, warm and welcoming environment for participants to attend classes or engage in activities with their peers,” Dolphin said.

The $70,000 comes from fundraising throughout this year and until 11 p.m. on Dec. 6. The two groups had their annual fundraisers including The Grind, The Freshman Male Auction, The Charity Auction, The Pancake Breakfast, other activities and the Charity Ball itself.

Cech credits the fundraising success to the groups’ public relations chairs.

“You can put on an amazing event, but if no one knows about it, then no one will come,” Cech said. “With fundraisers, you need to have people there.” In addition to the fundraisers the Knights and Setons took part in, they also conducted a letter-writing campaign in which they sent more than 1,000 letters asking for donations.

These amazing students are but one example of how Gonzaga’s mission permeates every aspect of student life. At Gonzaga, community service is strongly promoted through Gonzaga’s Jesuit roots, and the students carry out that mission in their everyday lives.

One reason I chose to attend Gonzaga to continue my education and foster my personal growth was the school’s love for community service. Everywhere you turn at Gonzaga, there are chances to volunteer, whether through mentoring children, helping out at Campus Kitchen or taking part in service initiatives such as Mission: Possible.

While the Knights and Setons have raised an incredible amount of money for Center Pointe already, they are still striving to raise more. If you would like to support the Knights and Setons, visit the following Web site and designate a donation for them.