Torch hosts its 5th annual Trevor Project fundraiser

The Torch Alliance held its fifth annual masquerade fundraiser in Babbio Atrium on Wednesday, Nov. 8. The event collected funds through student and faculty donations for the Trevor Project, a 24-hour suicide hotline for LGBTQ+ youth.

The masquerade “has gone through many iterations, never seeing exactly the same situation unfold twice,” said Dakota Van Deursen, President of the Torch Alliance. This year, the evening was complete with handmade carnival games, a student-picked playlist, food donations from local businesses, and over $1000 in giveaway prizes.

The Trevor Project Planning Committee, a subcommittee of the Torch Alliance, began meeting in late September and spent weeks coordinating the event. Members of the committee partnered with Alpha Phi Omega, the co-ed service fraternity, to create five new games for attendees to enjoy throughout the night, from 9 to 11 p.m. The Torch Alliance e-board encouraged all members of the Stevens student body to attend and raise awareness of teen suicide in the LGBTQ+ community.

“There is no better way to learn than educational fun,” Van Deursen said, “Torch aims to do that in every aspect that it can.”