Family Fun Night

TOBIE DEPAUW
LIFESTYLES EDITOR

On May 12, the Morris University Center will be invaded by an expected 3,000 children and family members for SIUE's first Family Fun Night.

Family Fun Night is the product of an enormous class project by professor Richard Bush's public administration and policy analysis class and the SIUE American Humanics Student Society.

The class of only 10 people began working on Family Fun Night on its second day of class in the fall, said Steve McLean, a student in the class and chairman of marketing for the event.

Family Fun Night has been held for the last eight years at the Gateway Center by the Children's Home and Aid Society of Illinois. Kim Hunt was the director of CHASI and a student in Bush's class. She suggested Family Fun Night as a project for the class, and class members began organizing it the next day.

The goal of Family Fun Night is to give children from the seven surrounding counties a fun night out with their families and bring home some creative activities. "By and large, the children will be underprivileged children who don't get opportunities like this very often," McLean said.

Family Fun Night will start at 5 p.m. Friday, May 12, and will have more than 35 activities for children and their families to participate in. Activities include video karaoke, bumper bowling, ice cream making, paper hat making, and other arts and crafts.

The Shrine Clowns and the Family Jugglers will be there, and the Gurney Seed Corporation will donate 500 seed packages so children will have plants to grow at home.

Children will learn about the weather in a special presentation by Mike Roberts, KSDK's meteorologist, who will donate time to the event.

The event will cost $3 per family, but families do not need to be related. Adults can bring as many children as they want, counting as one family. For example, a Boy Scout leader can bring a whole troop for the cost of one family. Children 13 years old or older not working as volunteers might not have as much to do, but there will be a deejay.

Volunteers and donors have made the event possible.

"Mary Robinson and the Morris University Center have been a tremendous help," McLean said.

A few Greek organizations have guaranteed the service of at least 25 volunteers. The event is in desperate need of more volunteers for the actual night of the event.

Volunteers are advertising the event in local child-care centers and schools. Family Fun Night coordinators are interested in anyone who would like to help the community and help these children have fun.

Donations from local businesses have been received. The Belleville News-Democrat donated $2,000 in advertising space and the event also received $2,000 from a community L.A.N. Grant.

To volunteer or for more information, call McLean at 650-2686 or Ann Parisi at 650-3645. The volunteer time can count as time toward service learning projects required for some SIUE classes.