Enloe Charity Ball aims to raise $200K for Southeast Raleigh Promise
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Enloe High School students are setting out to prove, once again, that you're never too young to make a difference in your community.
This year's Enloe Charity Ball will benefit Southeast Raleigh Promise, the community quarterback organization behind the Southeast Raleigh YMCA/Southeast Raleigh Elementary initiative.
At Saturday's Charity Ball, students are planning to hand over a $200,000 check to the non-profit, one of 47 organizations that applied for the coveted role of a beneficiary.
Southeast Raleigh Promise, which cites that 54-percent of children live at or below the poverty line in the Rock Quarry Road corridor, has a mission to end intergenerational poverty in southeast Raleigh.
Dalia Place, SERP's Partnerships Director, said the group will use the $200,000 in unrestricted funds to grow its model of providing education, health and wellness, safe and affordable housing, economic opportunity and leadership development.
"It's not just about the money that's on the check, it's about getting students and other people involved in actually seeing Raleigh as a whole," said Ella Cifaldi, one of Charity Ball's student organizers.
Throughout the semester, students have been volunteering at SERP, and plan to keep coming back long after this weekend's Charity Ball.
"The fact that it's not just a one and done for them- that they've really committed to this organization, to this initiative, and to their community has been an exciting experience," Place said.
Nate Barilich, the Charity Ball Fund Director, said since 2004, students have raised a total of $1 million for its 15 beneficiaries, raising more money each and every year.
"Everyone told me we couldn't hit $100,000 and here we are five years later, about to hit $200,000 for the second time," Barilich said.
The 2019 Enloe Charity Ball is Saturday, Dec. 7 at Marbles Kids Museum. All 1,600 tickets are already sold out, but you can still donate to Charity Ball online.
