TigerThon may have occurred in February, but the Towson group recent announced their new executive board this month. Freshman and pre-speech pathology and deaf studies major, Melanie Lutz has been named the group’s new President. We talked to Melanie about how she got involved with TigerThon and the groups plans for next year!
Her Campus: How long have you been doing TigerThon?
Melanie Lutz: I started the first couple weeks of this year.
HC: Why did you join?
ML: I was looking for a club that had good opportunities for community service because I’ve always enjoyed that and just something to meet people. A lot of my friends are in Thon at Penn State so I had a little bit of an idea about what it was for and I went there and it just clicked.
HC: What are you plans for TigerThon in the future, since you took over?
ML: Well, right now I’m really working toward making our committee bigger, so I’m looking to bring in new members now and at the beginning of next year. We’re definitely trying to set some very high goals for fundraising this year. Not sure of what our goal is going to be yet, but it is going to be big and I know we can do it.
HC: How much did the committee raise last year?
ML: The total was $77,464.12 and our goal for this year was $50,000 so we surpast it by more than $25,000 and more than doubled the total from last year. From 2011-2012, we tripled attendance of the event.
HC: Why do want to focus so much on growing the committe and how do you want to improve the amount of community service the group does?
ML: I would like to see the committee grow so we can get more people out to do fundraising things. I think the bigger it is, the more our school will be involved with it and the more we can raise and help. What we fundraise for is the Children’s Miracle Network with Johns Hopkins.
HC: Why do you like giving back so much and helping the community?
ML: Ever since I started doing community service in high school its been such a rewarding experience and I can’t think of a better way to spend my time than picking something that you’re passionate about, like I found this, and giving it everything you’ve got. I’d like to show people how rewarding it is and get them to get involved also.
HC: Anything else you’d like to say about TigerThon and your new presidency?
ML: Like I said about getting more people in the committee we’re going to have a new member event pretty soon. It’s a really welcoming environment and I think everyone should join TigerThon!
If you are interested in joining TigerThon, or want more information, check out their Facebook page!
Also, Lutz wants to credit the committee for all of this year’s success and is excited to see what they will accomplish together in the future.
Images courtesy of Melanie Lutz.