Megan Reed, Campus Carrier News Editor
Berry students will be using their artistic talents to support Action Ministries Rome as part of the Arts and Action fundraiser on April 12.
All the musical performers at the event will be Berry students, with the exception of Jim Watkins, associate professor of English, Rhetoric and Writing. Students will also donate their own works of art which will be sold at the event to raise money for Action Ministries Rome.
Action Ministries is a non-profit organization which seeks to help people leave poverty through food pantries, a community garden and the Backpack Buddies program, which every Friday during the school year provides children with enough food to the last them through the weekend. In addition to Action Ministries Rome, Action Ministries also operates other sites throughout Georgia in Athens, Atlanta, Augusta, Gainesville and Decatur.
Berry students and organizations have collaborated with Action Ministries Rome in the past. Hunger and Homelessness Outreach Programs (HHOPE) and Berry International Club (BIC) hosted a fashion show last month to raise money for the organization, and students have served with the organization as part of Make a Difference Day.
Junior Greg Robbins, a Bonner Scholar, works with Action Ministries Rome as a special projects coordinator, and he has been planning for the Arts and Action fundraiser since January. Robbins said the arts-themed event will have “a coffeehouse environment.”
Sophomore Thomas Orr will be singing and playing the acoustic guitar at the fundraiser.
“I love music,” he said, giving the simple reason he chose to participate.
Staff members from Action Ministries Rome will also be there to speak about the mission and programs of that organization and to answer any questions, Robbins said.
“We’re trying to educate the public, not just Berry,” Robbins said. “There will also be people from the Rome community.”
Arts and Action will be on April 12, and doors open at 7 p.m. This time was chosen so that students would be able to attend both the fundraiser and the formal, Robbins said.
It will be held at the Seven Hills Building, located at 538 Broad Street in Rome, in between the DeSoto Theatre and Swift and Finch Coffee. There will be a $5 entrance fee for students, including students from other schools in Rome, and a $7 fee for other members of the public.