Three BT chapters and partners have had a very productive year, raising funds for three new primary schools in Uganda

Charlottesville,Vir. – Students involved with BuildingTomorrow, Inc. (BT) at the University of Virginia hosted three fundraisers this past school year to collect money to build a primary school in Uganda.

In September they held “Mid Autumns Carnival” and featured a moon bounce, dunk tank and gladiator joust.The event brought together the Charlottesville community and university students to benefit children in Uganda. During the fall semester, they also hosted “Empty Your Pockets – Make Change.”

Their biggest success was “Bike to Uganda.” Held from March 31 to April 4, participants biked the 7,354 miles from Charlottesville to Kampala, Uganda, on stationary bikes and raised $17,610. This fundraiser pulled in enough money for the UVA chapter to meet its goal of $35,000, which is the amount needed to build a new school.

UVA took building the school to the next level by being more closely involved with the process. Students in the Engineering in Context Capstone Design program and Architecture Studio reCOVER have been designing the school. The groundbreaking for the BT Academy will take place this summer.

Indianapolis, Ind. – The Ambassadors for Children chapter at Butler University joined forces with Building Tomorrow, Inc. (BT) this past year to collect funds to build a new primary school in Uganda.

One fundraiser was “Faculty Face-2-Face Fundraising Week,” where chapter members explained their recent initiative, The Power of Children, to faculty members. They also held events at Noodles & Co. and Starbucks to raise money. The Lost Boys Rebuilding Southern Sudan came to speak at Butler, sponsored by the chapter and the Butler University Mortar Board. The joint event contributed $1,000 to building the primary school.

A Wii tournament sponsored by Student Sociology Association raised $500, Power of Children t-shirt sales brought in $500 and grants from Student Government Association and REACH contributed another $3,000. The group also hosted Krukid, a Ugandan rapper, in concert to raise $500.

The largest event, a golf outing and auction/raffle, raised $6,5000. High school students in Ohio hosted a dodgeball tournament on behalf of the chapter’s initiative and contributed almost $8,500. A fundraising letter campaign brought in over $20,000.

The chapter raised over $43,000 during the school year, which is more than enough to fund the building for a new primary school in Uganda. The school receiving the group’s contributions will break ground in June.

Notre Dame, Ind. – The chapter of Building Tomorrow, Inc. (BT) at Notre Dame University raised $35,000 this past school year, which is enough to build a new academy for children in Uganda.

To raise the funds, Notre Dame students got creative. For their “Brick by Brick” fundraiser, chapter members sold paper brick certificates for $5 each. They also sold BT t-shirts for $10 each. All proceeds from that sale went directly to BT. Around the holiday season, they sold Christmas tree ornaments for $10 each to represent buying bags of concrete for the school. They called the fundraiser “Do something concrete this Christmas.” At “Artists for Africa,” student musicians and a local band performed, bringing in $785 in donations.

A classic BT fundraiser, “Bike to Uganda” raised enough money to put Notre Dame’s chapter within reach of collecting enough money to build a school before the end of the school year. A private donation for their chapter supplied the remaining funds, bringing their total to $35,000.

“We are extremely thrilled to have reached our goal,” Notre Dame chapter coordinator Erin Jelm said.