Around 50 attendees gathered in the Undergrounds of the Old University Union on Monday evening to watch Hilarity for Charity (HFC), a student group at Binghamton University, host its second annual talent show fundraiser for the Alzheimer’s Association.
Founded by Seth Rogen in 2012, HFC is a national charity organization that raises money and awareness for Alzheimer’s disease research. In 2014, it was expanded to include HFC U, a fundraising competition in which the winning chapter receives a campus visit from Seth Rogen. HFC U has chapters at colleges throughout the country, including BU, SUNY Oneonta and the University of Vermont.
Admission to the show was $3, and about $300 was raised. Kayla Epstein, the president of Hilarity for Charity and a senior double-majoring in English and history, said that HFC is meaningful to the members of the club because many students’ families have been affected by Alzheimer’s disease.
“This is important to us because we’ve seen so many students on campus affected by the disease, and in my own personal experience I’ve had a grandparent pass away from Alzheimer’s,” Epstein said. “It really reaches people a different way than I’ve seen through the other clubs I’ve been involved in.”
The first act of the night was the Binghamton Vibrations, which sang an a cappella rendition of Wham!’s “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.” Next up the BU improv group, the Pappy Parker Players, told jokes involving Teen Vogue, sasquatches and first sexual experiences.
Lindsay Keshner, an e-board member for HFC and a senior majoring in psychology, said that the club decided to hold the talent show again because of the positive feedback it got last year, as well as to get more publicity.
“It was really successful last year,” Keshner said. “We had a lot of people come back and say they loved it, and it’s just something we can get involved with on campus. It gets our name out there considering we are a fairly new club and it’s something fun that people can get involved in rather than just coming to our meetings.”
Other acts that performed consisted of singer-songwriters and a cover band that performed songs like “Radioactive” by Imagine Dragons and “Roses” by the Chainsmokers.
HFC at BU was officially Student Association-chartered last year. In addition to hosting events like the talent show, the club volunteers in the local community by visiting Alzheimer’s care homes such as Brookdale Vestal West.
Khadijah Collins, a senior majoring in integrative neuroscience, said that she attended the fundraiser to support a friend, as well as to support a good cause.
“I feel like charity events like this are important to raise awareness,” Collins said. “A lot of people don’t know what’s going on in the world or why they need to raise money, so I feel like it’s an educational experience and it’s also an opportunity for us to help other people.”
Epstein said she hopes HFC can continue to raise money and awareness, even after she and the other seniors in the club graduate.
“We hope that we can make a difference, and that this can go on past all of us,” Epstein said.