UTC University Honors (UHON) students spread holiday cheer to Bridge Refugee Services by presenting the non-profit organization with a check for $4,500, proceeds from a UHON Date Auction event and winnings from a social media competition.
Nikki Wooten, a UHON senior, said this is the second year UHON decided to support Bridge Refugee Services, “an ecumenical, non-profit organization facilitating the resettlement of refugees in East Tennessee.”
“Bridge Refugee Services has a unique global mission that other charities in Chattanooga do not have. One of our own UHON graduates, Marko Bajic, came to the United States from Croatia with the help of Bridge Refugee Services,” Wooten explained.
A UHON date auction featuring date packages and gift certificates raised $3,500. UHON students also won a month-long competition created by local social media startup LifeKraze.
The LifeKraze Campus Competition encouraged UTC students to live actively and share their accomplishments online in short posts. Over a dozen student organizations participated, resulting in students posting thousands of accomplishments and earning hundreds of thousands of points.
UTC students were encouraged to tag their achievements with their organization’s designated tag. University Honors program was the winner, followed by the Locomotion Ultimate Frisbee Team and the Residence Hall Association.
“The main reason we got involved was to try and raise more money for Bridge Refugee Services. We thought we had a great chance at winning. Approximately 40 students posted their achievements. Since we are so close to finals, a lot of those accomplishments involved studying,” Wooten said.
See the UTC posts at www.lifekraze.com