By Chelsea Brumagen '13
Helping others is a central part of Siena’s Franciscan tradition and every year the Student Events Board devotes an entire week to raising money for a local charity. Charity Week Co-Chair Amanda Tashjian ’13 said this year’s Charity Week helped the Albany Chapter of Healing Spaces, a non-profit organization dedicated to giving children a healing environment after they have been in the hospital for a significant amount of time. Tashjian said the organization renovates children's bedrooms with new furnishings, toys and any necessary medical equipment so that children can recover in the comfort of their own homes.
Charity Week events included bingo, a scavenger hunt, a wine tasting, a dance marathon and a fundraiser at the Chili's restaurant on Wolf Road. The biggest event was the annual Charity Auction. It contributed more than half of the money raised by Charity Week this year. Thanks to all of the SEB events, the Siena College community raised about $5,000 for Healing Spaces.
Tashjian said that planning these events was a rewarding experience. “I truly enjoyed planning Charity Week knowing that my efforts were going to support Healing Spaces.” said Tashjian. “Down the road, the support from the Siena community will allow at least one child to come home from the hospital to a brand new, renovated room.”
Tashjian and her co-chair, Brianna St. Amour ’15 chose to support the Albany Chapter of Healing Spaces because they wanted to help the organization complete its first renovation.
“Knowing that the Siena community might be able to help put a smile on a child's face after being in the hospital for a long time makes the organization worthy of Charity Week's support in and of itself,” said Tashjian.
Tashjian also feels that the mission of Healing Spaces aligns well with the mission of Siena College. “Siena instills in all of us a desire to help those less fortunate or in a worse predicament than ourselves, and I truly believe that the work of Healing Spaces does just this,” Tashjian added.
To learn more about Healing Spaces, visit www.healingspaces.org
