Dining Services will collaborate with the Tufts Freethought Society (TFS) to organize a Cause Dinner tonight. It will raise money for families affected by California's recent wildfires.
"The fires are a pressing issue ... today in America," freshman and TFS President Patrick Andriola said. "Many families of Tufts students are affected by the fires. We just thought that we should have a direct connection in helping Tufts students."
As part of Cause Dinners, Dining Services donates $2.25 for each student the sponsoring organization can get to write down his or her ID number outside of Dewick-MacPhie or Carmichael. Dining Services has previously given away as much as $1,500 in a single night.
There is one Cause Dinner each semester and the group that fundraises is selected by the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate's Services Committee. The TFS, which was recently recognized by the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Judiciary, promotes sciences, logic and reason.
Both Dining Services and the Senate are enthusiastic about tonight's event.
Director of Dining Services Patti Klos said in an e-mail that Cause Dinners are "a way to raise money for many worthy causes, beyond feeding those who are hungry."
Meanwhile, sophomore and Services Committee Chair C.J. Mourning said that they offer students a cost-free way to support charities.
"They still eat the same meal. They are just agreeing to let a portion of the money from the cost of their dinner go [to] the organization," she said.
While many groups on campus applied for this semester's Cause Dinner, the Services Committee chose the Freethought Society because of the domestic relevance of its proposed charity, according to Mourning.
Other groups that applied were the women's rugby team, the field hockey team and three different groups from PANGEA.
Klos said that the challenge for the TFS tonight will be to grab distracted students' attention before they enter the dining halls.
"Secrets to successful Cause Dinners are to advertise in advance, so students think about stopping by the table where they can sign up to give away the meal, and having volunteers at the tables who actively engage diners into signing up," she said.
As such, the TFS has been working on campus to spread word about tonight's dinner, Andriola said.
