Students who do not yet have a date for Valentine's Day can buy one at Wednesday's Valentine's Day Charity Date Auction in Collis Commonground. The event will raise money for the United Way and Habitat for Humanity.
Those interested in more than helping out a good cause will have the opportunity to escape the typical Dartmouth social scene and go out on more conventional dates by bidding from 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday night.
"We wanted to integrate the widespread belief that there is no such thing as dating at Dartmouth with the traditional Valentine's Day theme," Lauren Pfisterer '06, philanthropy chair of the Panhellenic Council and event co-organizer, said. "With the strong reactions from people who will be auctioned and from the Greek community, we are hopeful for a great turnout."
Participants up for auction have completed creative questionnaires to provide announcers with brief and witty advertisements. After their introductions, students will perform talents alongside music from 99 Rock before the bidding commences.
Once the student is introduced to an audience of bidders, announcers will randomly draw a prize to determine the framework of the date.
Hanover stores have donated merchandise to provide date settings, including movie passes to the Nugget, dinner at the Canoe Club and Ben and Jerry's ice cream.
The event's co-chairs were once skeptical of the auction's success after an attempted date auction last term that was mired in organizational shortcomings. But the enthusiastic reactions of volunteers and generous funding from campus organizations have instilled them with a renewed confidence for a strong turnout.
To recruit volunteers for the auction, organizers contacted the philanthropy chairs of Greek houses to request that event information be passed on to Greek members. Once Greek interest in the event emerged, information about the auction spread quickly throughout campus, resulting in more participants than expected.
"Currently, there are seven boys and nine girls signed up to be auctioned," Jennifer Peterson '06, a key volunteer recruiter and treasurer of the event's donations, said.
"The added enthusiasm from non-participants is quite evident, as donations have been made from various house members and as a large supporting framework has induced excitement among auction volunteers."
To aid the event's funding, five Greek houses -- Psi Upsilon, Chi Gamma Epsilon, Phi Delta Alpha and Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternities and Sigma Delta sorority -- have pledged at least $100. In addition, the Panhellenic Council has donated $200 toward the event.
Other Greek houses have agreed to offer their support for the event through non-monetary means, Pfisterer said. Delta Delta Delta sorority offered a philanthropy credit option to anyone who attends the event and many members of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority have put themselves on the auction block.
Habitat for Humanity, the group hosting the auction, provides opportunities for college students to volunteer in foreign countries.
This year's Habitat for Humanity group, organized by Welton Chang '05, will travel to Bolivia. Although a few national organizations have traveled to Bolivia's capital to engage in service work in the past, the Dartmouth chapter is the lone American group to enter the small community of Tarija, Chang said.
Increased migration and urban industrialization has recently led to residential overcrowding in Bolivian housing developments, according to Chang.
The group will build a house for 10 days during spring break and conclude their trip with a two-day tour of the country to interact with the local community.
Despite high interest among college students for traveling outside the United States, some find the costs of such trips prohibitive.
"The cost of the international trips deters many college students from participating," Chang said. "The payment for airfare is not feasible for many, and there are additional costs of building materials that we have to provide."
The group has raised $4,500 for the spring trip thus far but will need to raise another $1,500 to make it a reality. Although Chang has high hopes to raise most of the necessary finances with the auction, two smaller fundraisers will occur to meet the remainder of the costs.
Peterson, a member of the Bolivia trip group and an auction participant, is excited and optimistic about the financial outcome of the event.
"The event is for such a great cause, and it emphasizes a high element of entertainment for the campus," she said.
"Even if a student is not planning on bidding, an incentive to attend should be to simply witness a funny talent show -- similar to the inevitable enticement everyone receives when watching the ridiculous contestants on American Idol."
