Bringing a new twist to the ALS “Ice Bucket Challenge” that went viral on social media this past summer, the Student Activities Board (SAB) set up a “Dunk Tank” at the Fall Carnival. The activity gave students a chance to drop faculty members, including Head of School John Palfrey and Paul Murphy, Dean of Students, into a tank of ice-cold water.
Each student paid $1 per shot at the dunk tank, raising over $300 to be directly donated to the ALS Association.
The Ice Bucket Challenge was started by Pete Frates, a former Division I baseball player who was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). This past summer, the challenge spread rapidly via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as people posted videos of themselves participating, while nominating their friends to do the same.
“There are a lot of clubs that target their own charity, but there isn’t this campus-wide charity, so I thinks it’s cool that on behalf of [Andover], we are donating this money to the association,” said Stephanie Wong, Student Activities Coordinator.
ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a progressive, neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, which ultimately results in death, according to the ALS Association’s website.
“[Wong] got the idea when the Ice Bucket Challenge was going viral around the country… She thought it would be fun to bring a little bit of that to Andover and raise money for a good cause,” said Christopher Capano, Director of Student Activities.
According to Wong, many faculty members were willing to participate in the dunk tank because the proceeds were going to charity.
Murphy said, “We are not just learning about math, French or biology. There’s a bigger world that you are a part of, that we are all a part of, and it’s important to always have that in mind.”
