Two Fall Fundraisers for Brown's China Care Club

November 19, 2009

Moon Festival
Providence, RI. On a rainy Saturday afternoon in early October, families gathered in Brown University’s Faunce House University Center to partake in China Care Brown’s first ever Moon Festival. The event showcased interactive appearances by Brown student groups performing Chinese yo-yo, Taiko, juggling, and Tae-Kwon Do. The performers gave Brown's Tae-Kwon Do Club gives lessonslessons after each performance.

“It was a really good turnout. The majority of the families were from either Playgroup or Mentorship, but many of them brought their friends,” said Victoria Chen (’11), current club president of China Care Brown.

Attendees could also pay for tickets to participate in various activities, from decorating fans and bowling to “Pin the Bunny on the Moon” and pretend fishing, each with a candy or toy reward at the end.

“The kids especially enjoyed fishing. They really liked the ninja duck prizes. Some were fishing over and over again because they wanted to collect all the different colors.” Ho-hin Choy (’10), the club’s publicity chair, remarked.

Jazz Benefit Concert
Chris Potter(center) performs with the Kevin Hays Trio.Later in the month, the club hosted a Jazz Benefit Concert, featuring Grammy-nominated saxophonist Chris Potter and the Kevin Hays Trio. More than 100 guests came out to listen at the university’s Grant Recital Hall.

“It was our first time trying out a benefit concert,” said Emily Cole (’10), a member of China Care Brown, and the manger of the event. “We had a really good turnout. The guests were both Brown students and families from the surrounding area.”

Brown's Emily Cole mingles with Kevin Hays (left) and Chris Potter (right).Club members sold tickets to students two weeks prior to the concert and also made them available at the door. By entering a raffle or buying VIP passes, some guests also had the opportunity to mingle with the performers at a post-concert reception.

Andy Suzuki (’09), a local acoustic pop pianist, opened the show with six songs off his demo CD and was soon followed by Chris Potter and the Kevin Hays trio. CDs by all three artists were available for sale after the concert. A portion of the CD profits went to China Care.

In total, China Care Brown raised more than $3000 from the two events. All proceeds will fund vital surgeries for orphans in China.