What do President Bradshaw, Vice President of University Advancement Christopher Simoneau and more than 100 of Florida Gulf Coast University’s top donors and alumni do on Saturday nights?
They go bowling.
The annual “Dollars for Scholars” event put on by the alumni associaton’s Eagle Ambassadors took place this past Saturday night.
Attendees bowled on teams, bought raffle tickets, won awards for most spirited team outfits and participated in a silent auction.
Anne Ford, graduate assistant for Alumni Relations, said that the event raised $15,000. This money will go directly to the FGCU Foundation, which will use it to pay for student scholarships.
“The event was put on by several sponsors, and all of the auction items were donated,” Ford said.
Auction items included a variety of items from a necklace from Dunkin Diamonds, to a trip to the Everglades, to a collectible Mr. Potatohead figure.
Attendees were able to buy mulligans to give them the chance to re-bowl a bad frame.
Junior Eagle Ambassador Christina Garcia’s favorite part of the night occurred when she was selling mulligans to the bowlers.
“I ran into Mrs. Bradshaw (Jo Anna), and she said she wasn’t playing because she gets too competitive. But she looked around at everyone bowling and bought ten mulligans to hand out to the people who she thought were doing the worst,” Garcia said. “It was so funny.”
There was also a raffle at the event for specially made bowling pins. Local artist Dave Andersen, FGCU students Kendall Futch and Stephanie Smith, along with FGCU alumni Jennifer Bibb and Scott Guelcher decorated one bowling pin each in an FGCU theme to be given as raffle prizes.
Junior Eagle Ambassador Karen Muhl enjoyed watching the raffle. “There was a really cute little girl who won the glittery pin made by Dave Andersen, and she was so excited.”
Muhl hopes to attend this event after she graduates. “It was a night for the alumni to get together and reminisce about their time at FGCU,” she said.
According to Ford, last year 4,000 FGCU students applied for a Foundation Scholarship. One thousand students received a scholarship.
Foundation donors often have a specific set of requirements for individual scholarships, so there are scholarships available for a variety of students.
For example, the Community Health Association scholarship goes specifically to students from Lehigh Acres pursuing a career in the health field.
The next event to raise money for foundation scholarships will be the Founder’s Cup Golf Tournament, on Oct. 10.