MIMSA, the association of international med students at the MU Faculty of Medicine, organised two fundraising weekends in May to help people with serious conditions. This year, the money raised by students during Charity Week will help patients with epidermolysis bullosa, commonly known as “butterfly” disease.
Their most successful fundraising activity was selling snacks. Altogether, the event lasted for six days, which members of the association spent selling muffins, cupcakes, and other small baked goodies in the former building of the Faculty of Medicine in Komenského náměstí. “We are very happy to say that we had over seventy bakers, all volunteers, who all played an active part in the charity event,” says Ana Corte, one of the MIMSA members.
Charitable basketball
This year, the students decided to donate the money to DEBRA, who have been helping people with “butterfly” disease since 2004. “We didn't set any target for the fundraiser. We just agreed that the more money we raised, the happier we'd be,” explains Corte.
To raise as much money as possible, they organised a number of additional activities besides selling snacks. “We had yoga, dance lessons, basketball, karaoke, and a pub quiz for anyone who wanted to help support DEBRA and have fun at the same time,” adds Corte.
Bigger and better next year
When the fundraiser finished in mid-May, they began to wrap up the finances – and they were in for a nice surprise when they finished counting. As Corte says, “We raised more than 81,000 crowns and were over the moon with the results.” The students then met representatives from DEBRA on 11 June to present them with the cheque.
It was the second year of the Charity Week and, as the students say, they managed to avoid a number of beginner mistakes compared to the first one. “We would like to get better every year. Next time, we'd like to raise even more money and extend our range of fundraising activities,” says Corte.