Campus event keeps ‘a child alive’

Cornhole and volunteering formed a perfect match Saturday at Alumni Hall in the Indiana Memorial Union.\nThe Lutheran Campus Ministry at IU held its second annual Campus Cornhole Championship, raising $1,500 for Keep a Child Alive. Keep a Child Alive raises money to combat AIDS in Africa.\n“There’s a stigma on AIDS,” said senior Stephen Amundson, Lutheran Campus Ministry president and the event’s disc jockey. “People are more concerned with cancer and other diseases. It’s important that you don’t forget about AIDS.” \nTo raise money for the cause, 16 teams competed in the eight-round event. The first four rounds were in “round-robin” style. \n“We wanted to guarantee everyone at least four games,” said graduate student Doug Doblar, the event referee. “We didn’t want to bring people out here and then tell them to leave after only one game.”\nLutheran Campus Ministries decided a cornhole championship would be the best fundraiser. Not only is it something everyone can play, Doblar said, but it can also be played inside, so they didn’t have to worry about weather.\n“Cornhole is an event that everyone likes,” Amundson said. “It’s hard to make it appropriate, though. We had to convince people you can still have fun playing cornhole without drinking.”\nAfter the initial four rounds, the event was single elimination. In the last round, after an introduction of the final two teams, representatives from Sigma Chi and Phi Sigma Kappa faced off with the Chicago Bulls theme song playing in the background. All four members were freshmen. After an initial deficit, Sigma Chi came back to win, 21-5. \n“I just love cornhole,” said freshman Rob Busch. “This lets me compete and get philanthropy points for my house.”\nBusch has been playing for years and throws with a unique spin so the bag stays straighter in the air. This way, when it hits the board, it doesn’t fly off.\nThe winners and runners-up each got to take home a set of cornhole boards. Various local companies and individuals helped sponsor the event, contributing money, food and prizes, said Kelli Skram, one of the event coordinators and campus pastor.\n“This is really a grassroots event,” Skram said. “Students are the ones who planned and organized it.”\nIn addition to raising money through donations and entry fees, Lutheran Campus Ministry also hoped to inform students about AIDS and the situation in Africa. Freshman Megan Werling organized a corner of the room dedicated to raising awareness about AIDS. \n“It’s not about throwing money at a cause; it’s about taking action,” Werling said. “I think it’s our responsibility as students who have all of these opportunities available to us to use them in order to help others.”\nWerling set up a table where students could write letters to their senators and local representatives. If students wrote a letter, they were given five raffle tickets. Local business contributed raffle items such as gift cards and a spa treatment.