By Emma Zaremba
Features Assignment Editor
In the Bona Bubble, we support our family through it all. On Sunday, Nov. 3, at noon, a group of students in marketing professor Michael Russell’s Event and Sponsorship Marketing class will host a memorial dodgeball tournament in honor of Bonnies’ baseball pitcher Andrew Revello.
Revello graduated in May and died over the summer. The tournament will be a time for students to gather in honor of the fallen Bonnie and support a memorial scholarship fund in his name.
Senior marketing major Tatyana Ithier, one of the members of the group hosting the event, explained why they chose to host this event for their class project.
“A couple of us were close with Andrew Revello, and it’s good for the Bonaventure community to be able to run this fundraiser for him,” Ithier said. “I know his parents have been working hard to put money in the scholarship fund they have for him, so we thought it would be generous of us to help them out.”
There was a vital step the group had to take before they knew they would be able to hold the event, according to Ithier.
“We wanted to make sure it was okay with his parents, because we didn’t want to put his name on all of these advertisements and do all of these things (without approval),” Ithier said. “The situation is still fresh because it did happen this summer, but once we contacted his parents, they thought it was a great idea.”
It’s important that students come and support this cause, according to Ithier.
“His parents want to come and watch, so we want to show them how much the St. Bonaventure community loved Andrew and how it is a great loss,” she said.
A detailed process ensued after contacting Revello’s parents, specifically when asking for sponsorship donations for the event, Ithier said.
“We decided to talk to many professors that he had to gain insight, as well as reaching out to Olean and Allegany because we know how close the community is with Bonaventure,” Ithier said. “Carol Wittmeyer and Laurie Branch both donated money that helped us out the most. Other sponsors such as The Burton and Steve’s (the owner of The Burton) lawn care business have donated to help us out as well.”
Aside from the tournament, the group is hoping to offer other services the day of the event for participants, guests and sponsors, Ithier said.
“We’re still working on the itinerary, but we’re hoping that once everyone is there, Father Francis can open the event with a prayer (for Andrew),” Ithier said. “We are still working on having apple cider and donuts or something like that for participants, but overall we want a nice opening, have the tournament and have a nice closing ceremony. Toward the end, we plan on thanking our sponsors (if they choose to attend) and introduce them to his family.”
Following the games, a mass will be held in Revello’s name, according to Ithier. The mass will begin at 7 p.m. in the Doyle Chapel.
Traditional forms of advertising can be found around campus, but the majority of their advertising success has come from the group’s social media presence.
“A lot of people have been retweeting everything we say on Twitter, including the Other Place in Allegany, and we’ve gotten a decent amount of followers in a short amount of time,” Ithier said. “The Campus Activities Board (CAB) allowed us to put it on their Facebook and Twitter accounts as well to gain more followers. We have a Facebook group where we update everyone on everything; it has given us a lot of feedback.”
The group hopes the event will make a lasting impact, so that it will become an annual fundraiser and continue to raise money for the scholarship fund.
“I feel like if this became an annual thing, not only would it be amazing, but it would also look great for the school by showing how much people really care,” Ithier said. “I’m sure the baseball coaches would love it. I’m sure the baseball team would love it and athletics (in general).”
Fellow group member Peter Dolliver, a senior marketing major, voiced the message the group wanted to get across to the community by hosting this event.
“It’s a cause that’s really close to a lot of people that are on campus, so I think we should all just think about how something like this would impact our lives if it were to happen to someone close to us,” Dolliver said. “We all just need to come together as a community to make it possible and really give back as much as we can.”
