The Aurora Center for Advocacy and Education is a survivor-centered advocacy and crisis-intervention center that provides invaluable resources to the University community. The Aurora Center in delivers free and confidential services to victims of sexual assault, harassment, and stalking, and students at the U of M have created an initiative called Fund Aurora in order to raise funds that will help The Aurora Center to implement educational programming that will create awareness around consent, sexual assault, relationship violence and stalking on campus. The Aurora Center is an essential resource for students, faculty, and staff and plays a critical role in enhancing our campus climate. As a part of Fund Aurora 2018, here are some events where you can show your support and help fund The Aurora Center!
Jewish Comedy Night
For the first of many Fund Aurora events, Minnesota Hillel and GopherIsrael are hosting a Jewish Comedy Night at Minnesota Hillel on Tuesday, April 10th (tonight!), 2018 from 7:00-8:30pm. Come for a laugh and a good cause with three local comedians: Kate McCarthy, Wendy Berkowitz, and Sidney Oxborough. Raffle tickets are available for raffle prizes from local businesses and will be raffled throughout the event so you don’t want to miss out on a chance to win! All the proceeds will go to the Fund Aurora campaign, and donations are encouraged.
Fund Aurora Kickoff Panel
With the support of Panhellenic Council UMN and those of us here at Her Campus Minnesota, come join Fund Aurora as we kick off our 2018 fundraising campaign, K(NO)W MORE, which will take place on Sunday, April 15th, from 6:30pm-8:30pm at Coffman Memorial Union. This year’s event will feature a panel of leaders discussing the need for inclusion, education, and meaningful engagement as we work to end sexual and power-based violence. Insomnia Cookies will be provided and attendees will have the opportunity to win various prizes while raising money for The Aurora Center. Panelists will include:
Abeer Syedah, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Students United Paul Ang, Prevention Program Coordinator at The Aurora Center Sylvia Vue, Advocate and Multicultural Student Engagement Student Life Advisor at Minnesota State University – Mankato Please stay tuned to the Facebook Event further additions to our panel will be announced soon!
Cocoa for Consent
She’s the First UMN will be hosting this event in support of Fund Aurora! Order a mug online here starting April 2nd. Pick up will be on Monday, April 16th from 10am-5pm on the Washington Ave Bridge on the East Bank side. The mug with its unique design comes with an individual serving of cocoa for $9. All proceeds benefit Fund Aurora, and payments can be made via Venmo to She’s the First-UMN (@ stf_umn).
Harry Potter Trivia at BlackStack
BlackStack Brewing and Her Campus Minnesota (yours truly!) will be hosting a trivia night on Monday, April 16th from 7:00-9:00pm in support of Fund Aurora. As always, prizes for winners, costumes and clever team names. THIS TIME we are using our nerdery for good! BlackStack and Russell’s Traveling Kitchen will be donating a portion of proceeds to Fund Aurora in order to support the Aurora Center and start a meaningful dialogue about sexual assault and domestic violence.
Pies, Pizza, and Philo
The Panhellenic Council here at the U is putting on their own event to raise money for The Aurora Center. Come to the mall area Northrop Auditorium from 4-7pm on Tuesday, April 17th for pies and pizza! For only $5, you will get pizza, and have the opportunity to throw a pie or a water balloon at members of Panhel. There will also be a presentation followed by a discussion about toxic masculinity. All proceeds will go to the Fund Aurora campaign.
The Sound of Aurora
Join Women for Political Change and The Wake Magazine for The Sound of Aurora, a night of music, art, and spoken word, as well as a silent auction! All proceeds will go to the Aurora Center. To donate an art piece for our auction, please email wfpc@umn.edu. Featured artists include: Sophie Blue, Hannah Westerholm, Ava Saunders, Bruise Violet, SAPPHIRE, and Kate McCarthy. Tickets are $7 for pre-sale here, or $9 at the door. Doors will open 6:30pm and the show begins 7pm, so come by the Whole music club in the basement of Coffman on Wednesday, April 18th to check it out!
SWE Barbecue and Raffle
The Society of Women Engineers at the U of M will be hosting a barbecue and will also be selling raffle tickets to help support The Aurora Center. The barbeque will take place in the courtyard of Lind Hall on Thursday, April 19th from 11am-2pm. The baskets will be raffled off at the April 17th SWE meeting, so you have until then to get those tickets. There are two raffle basket options for you to choose from. The first is a “Mega Basket” ($3 per ticket, $125 value) and will include a Fund Aurora Shirt, Canes basket, 6 free Sandwiches at Jimmy John’s, 6 $5 vouchers to Erbert’s and Gerbert’s, and 2 burritos at Burrigato. The second is a “Treat Yo’self Basket” ($2 per ticket, $300 value), and will include one free month at Corepower Yoga, a UMN mug, and coffee from Purple Onion. Payment can be made by Venmo to @sweumn, and be sure to enter your name, x500, and the basket type. All proceeds will go to help fund The Aurora Center.
By helping fund The Aurora Center, we are demonstrating to the administration here at the U how important TAC is to our campus, making clear this community’s desire to see increased investment in the center’s service, staffing, and space needs. Any donations you give will help in the effort to continue providing students the resources and education they need to combat sexual assault on campus. Be sure to check out some of these events and see what so many dedicated students have worked so hard on for such a great cause!