Student Group Raises $1,300 to Support Local Nonprofit

Aug. 14, 2018

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Illinois Wesleyan University’s Circle K International (CKI) chapter raised $1,300 to support local nonprofit Prairie State Legal Services through the group’s second annual trivia night held during the spring semester in the Hansen Student Center.

IWU’s CKI brought together more than 60 people, including members of the Bloomington-Normal community and fellow CKI members from Illinois State University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In addition to a night of trivia, raffles and more, CKI members raised awareness for their sustainability initiative by encouraging terracycling and by providing attendants with free hot/cold tumblers to eliminate waste from plastic water bottles.

"The second annual IWU Circle K Trivia Night was a huge success,” said past president of IWU CKI Taylor Williams ’18 (Heyworth, Illinois). “We raised $1,300, which was more than double what we raised at our first trivia night.”

The money raised went to Prairie State Legal Services, a nonprofit which provides elders and low income residents with serious civil legal problems access to free legal aid. Their offices serve 36 counties in Illinois, including McLean County.

“When Abby Kauerauf ’19 and I created Trivia Night, we knew we wanted it to benefit a nonprofit which aligned with the (University's) annual theme each year,” explained Williams. “With the theme last year being The Evolution of Revolution, we thought the mission of Prairie State Legal Services fit well. We were able to get all of our raffle items and trivia prizes donated, so Trivia Night did not cost IWU Circle K anything to host, and all of the money raised went directly to the Bloomington Prairie State Legal Services office.”

Circle K International is the world’s largest collegiate-led service organization, dedicated to fostering service, leadership and fellowship in its members. Throughout its 82-year history, the organization has advocated for various charitable causes through partnerships with UNICEF, Students Team Up to Fight Hunger (STUFH), March of Dimes, Better World Books and others.

By Rachel McCarthy ’21