Photo by Danielle DeAngelis
The Colleges Against Cancer club hosted the Pink Tie Formal dance, an event in which attendees donate proceeds towards breast cancer research, on Wednesday, Oct. 23 in the Trustees Pavilion.
Outside the doors were pink streamers and matching balloons. Breast cancer awareness ribbons could be found in each of the wall corners and multiple people stood taking pictures with the decor in formal attire.
It cost $5 to attend the event, and each attendee was immediately entered in a drawing for AirPods, with the winner to be announced at the end of the night.
Once inside, there was plenty to notice, the first of which being the crowd. Hundreds of college students in formal dresses and suits (many fittingly matching the pink theme) were present, happy as they chatted, danced and ate the variety of food served there. It was truly a notable sight from the very start.
Arriving at the start of the event, the food line appeared endless. Groups of friends wrapped around the room so they can get their choice of the Chinese food, soul food and pizza that was offered. The volunteers that prepped and catered the food were members of the Colleges Against Cancer club.
One of these members was Kayla Gill, the head of the food committee for the Pink Tie Formal dance. When asked how she felt to have such an important role in one of the largest events of the semester, she stated, “I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity. To see so many people show up and raise money together for such a great cause is so relieving.”
After eating a hefty dinner, there was still plenty to do. They could dance with their friends to the tunes blaring from the speakers at the front of the room, sponsored by WRPR.
More popularly, attendees played various games and activities lined around the room in order to win tickets.
Some of the attractions included picture frame decorating, bra pong and a candy goody bag station. In charge of the candy station was CAC treasurer Ben Prill and member Sean Adomilli.
“This is my first Pink Tie Formal,” Adomilli said. “I love seeing the amount of people here show for a great cause!”
“This is a very important event with a good cause, so it’s great to see this large of a turnout.” Prill agreed.
What happened to the tickets that were earned at each activity table? They were used for one to enter drawings attendees could pick from the incredibly large variety of prizes; a cotton candy machine, a television, gift cards and a record player were just a few of the options one can choose from.
Aside from the donation at the entrance, mostly everything else was free, making it a bargain for an attendee’s buck. T-shirts were being sold as well, from the Colleges Against Cancer club’s merchandise to shirts designed for last spring’s Relay for Life event.
The event was notably a huge success, and CAC is now set to help prepare for next semester’s largest event: Relay for Life. While the event is run by Ramapo’s Relay for Life organization, the Colleges Against Cancer club is fittingly a crucial co-sponsor for the fundraising event.
ddeange1@ramapo.edu
