Syracuse’s sport management club will raise money to support Make-A-Wish Central New York when it holds its 15th annual Charity Sports Auction on Nov. 16. The benefit, which is completely student-run, will be on the Carrier Dome floor during the Syracuse men’s basketball game against Seattle University.

Designer bags, restaurant gift cards, electronics and signed sports memorabilia — the majority with ties to SU Athletics — will be auctioned off at the event. All funds will go toward making children’s dreams come true, said Sam Marteka, one of the event’s head auction chairs.

“We like to stress as a student organization helping out in our community and leaving the Syracuse community better than it was when we arrived on campus,” Marteka said in an email. “The auction goes a long way to benefit a really important local charity each year, and we love to volunteer our time to help others.”

Since its inception, the Charity Sports Auction has raised over $467,000 for local charities, including the Boys & Girls Clubs, American Diabetes Association and Special Olympics New York, said Marc Orlin, a committee chair for this year’s auction.

However, it has only grown since it was moved to coincide with basketball games in 2012. According to the event’s website, in the seven auctions before the switch, the club raised $147,000. In the seven auctions since, it has raised over $320,000. This was highlighted by the 2014 auction, which also benefited Make-A-Wish and raised $59,200.

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Between six and 10 charities apply and the club interviews representatives from each. Then, they decide on the top-three applicants, who make a presentation that club members vote on.

For this year’s auction, SPM thought Make-A-Wish embodied the strongest mission. The organization’s commitment to granting wishes to children with serious illnesses positively impacts society, but more importantly, gives children a break from harsh realities, said Connor Monzo, an auction advisor.

“With Make-A-Wish as the beneficiary, we feel it’s important to raise money to help grant life-changing wishes to kids who are going through challenges most of us will never face,” Monzo said in an email. “With 130 wishes in their pipeline, we are hoping to directly reduce the number of kids waiting for a wish.”

In order to accomplish this goal, the community has to continue to make this event as successful as it’s been previously, Orlin said.

It’s become a SU tradition because it’s a simple way to impact the community, especially for the SPM club members, Orlin said. Students are able to get the real-world experience of helping people in need, considering how the club works like a non-profit organization as it donates the money to the beneficiary in the weeks following the auction.

Monzo added that students put a lot of work into the auction. Whether it’s spreading the word through social media, retrieving donations, selling sponsorships or meeting with other student organizations, he said, each club member has a hand in running the event.

“The auction is an opportunity to be able to give back to the Syracuse area,” Orlin said. “Sports have the ability to reach and impact a wide variety of people, which is exactly what the auction does.”

Published on October 30, 2019 at 11:11 pm

gfpagano@syr.edu