The Binghamton University crew team is taking an uncommon approach to fundraising. They are selling not baked goods or T-shirts, but themselves.
Rent-a-Rower, a program in which the crew team rents out their rowers to members of the community, faculty and students for manual labor, is part of an annual fundraiser.
Nicole Stadnicky, a senior majoring in biological anthropology and president of the team, said that Rent-a-Rower is a mutually-beneficial fundraiser for both the team and the community.
It is based on the premise that there are many people in the community who need chores to be done but cannot find anyone to take on their jobs, cannot afford to pay a professional service and want to help out a local organization while getting something tangible in return, said Michael Eichler, an alumnus of BU and former vice president of the team in 2008.
In previous years, the team has been hired for a variety of chores including raking leaves, painting, cleaning, mowing lawns or working at an event held by the alumni office.
‘The fundraiser allows for increased positive publicity in the community and provides a service to the community at a very low rate with the added benefit that they are helping out a student-run organization,’ Eichler said. ‘The Rent-a-Rower also benefits the team and community because it shows that there are student organizations that are making an active effort to engage the local community and to bridge the divide that is so often seen between students and local residents.’
Crew is an expensive sport ‘ boats can cost around $40,000 each ‘ so the team is always trying to reach out to the community.
‘BU Crew is not an NCAA sport and fundraising is important to keeping the club running,’ Stadnicky said. ‘It’s also fun to get to know our community members.’
The team has been advertising with e-mails, word-of-mouth and fliers that they have been posting on campus and in the community.
‘Faculty and community members contact the crew team through our website or e-mail, telling us that they wish to rent a rower,’ said Colin Aylesworth, a senior majoring in English and former vice president of the team from fall 2009 to spring 2010. ‘We have a rolling application, and we’ll schedule individual jobs for any time slot on any given day.’
Chris Famiglietti, a sophomore double-majoring in psychology and anthropology and the current vice president of the team, sets up the appointment between the renter and a rower who volunteers to take on the task.
The team charges $50 for four hours of work per rower.
‘We do exceptional jobs,’ Famiglietti said. ‘We have recurring renters that come back to us year after year.’
According to Famiglietti, Rent-a-Rower is now in its fifth year and is growing in success thanks to leadership.
‘It was really promoted and revitalized in 2008 by Eichler, and then further honed last year when I was VP,’ Aylesworth said.
Aylesworth explained that other crew teams at other universities are so established in their community with their Rent-a-Rower program that they have a single day where potential renters pick up crew team members from a designated location to do their work, and then bring the rowers back.
‘These days have potential to raise over $10,000 if properly planned and executed,’ he said. ‘We’re not there yet, but it’s certainly something to strive for.’