When I say the words “Enloe’s Twelfth Annual Charity Ball,” I am not just focused on an evening of celebration at Marbles Kids Museum. When I share our goal of $120,000, I am not just hoping to hold up a giant check. When I speak about Urban Ministries, I am not solely considering their three branches of outreach, their facility, or even their wonderful staff. With all these facets of such an intricate event, it would be easy to look at any of these things as the core of our mission. However, it is my great joy to share that indeed, this is not the case. We pour months of hard work, sweat, and tears in not for any accolade or recognition; we do it for them.
To think of Charity Ball from an entirely logistical view would disgrace its very purpose. While funding, so graciously donated, is how so many people show their support to our cause, it is merely a vector to impart change. The profound impact we anticipate making on the community through Urban Ministries has already begun. Regardless of the number we write on that teal piece of cardboard, none of it is worth the countless buckets of change without considering the lives it will alter for the better. There is a woman at the Helen Wright Center whose poetry speaks to the very heart of all those who have felt loss, reminding them to look for hope. There is a family being served from the food pantry off of Capital Boulevard who no longer has to make the choice between heat in this bitter winter or putting food on the table. There is a sweet elderly man with a chronic illness, and an inability to work long hours in an attempt to afford his prescription. This same man no longer has to feel this turmoil, and can face each day knowing his health care needs are being met. For the sake of individuals such as these, we have undertaken this endeavor.
It has been such a beautiful process seeing so many people, in our home state and beyond, stepping up to support them. With the recent events in our nation, it is more vital than ever that we unite for the good of our world. As a group of only 65 high school students representing a student population of over 2000, we have become the spark. This spark is one that can and HAS set people on fire, burning with a desire to advocate for and aid those whose voices cannot start a flame on their own. Thank you all for helping us ignite this flame within our community. We have journeyed so far, and are now ablaze with a passion too strong to put out. We are lighting up our school, our city, and our world, not for any number or great name. When I help hold up that check tonight, I will be honored to think of the lives those numbers can reach. No matter what, I am certain, we are doing it for them.
Julia Weaver
Executive Council Vice President of Service