RSCO FEATURE HURST HARMONICS Jeans for a Cause donates over $600 to SafeNet Erie

By Samantha Weber Editor in chief

By Vydalia Weatherly

Are you a fan of the hit movie series Pitch Perfect and/or the award-winning TV show Glee? Perhaps you love having your moment in the spotlight? Do you hum to yourself on the way to class while listening to your favorite song with your headphones on full blast? Do you consider yourself a creative and/or musically talented person? If you answered yes to any of the previous questions, there is a new a caawesome RSCO on campus that may be the perfect club for you.

Freshmen Music Education major Emily Turpin, and Music Therapy major Nova Bolling recently founded Hurst Harmonics.

“Nova and I have the goal of just starting the group, we want to start learning music with new people and having fun” said Turpin. Turpin serves as the RSCO’s president and Bolling serves as the Vice President.

“Our mission is to have a group of people who love to make music and work as a group. A capella can be an extremely bonding activity, and having a closeknit group is one of our goals” Turpin said about the mission of Hurst Harmonics.

Turpin and Bolling had plans to start the RSCO last semester, but due to having difficulties finding an advisor to sponsor Hurst Harmonics the RSCO did not become official until the end of this January. Since the RSCO is fairly new, they have not had the opportunity to host any events yet. However, the president and vice president are currently thinking of and working on different ideas for future events. The group’s first rehearsal will be held the week of March 13-17, with date and time still to be announced. More information will be available after Spring Break.

If you are on the fence about joining, there is no risk of giving the RSCO a chance. When asked who could join Turpin said, “Literally anyone who can sing, would like to sing, and who is open to learning.”

While Hurst Harmonics has yet to have any events, positive memories have already been created. “Nova and I worked really hard for like three months to get everything moving, and it was the best feeling when our RSCO was approved, and we got people to start signing up!” said Turpin.

“Please sign up! There are fliers in a lot of places, or anyone can reach out to me or Nova through our emails, etupri83@lakers.mercyhurst.edu and abolli78@lakers.mercyhurst.edu” said Turpin. The fliers currently hung around campus for Hurst Harmonics include a QR code which leads to a form students can fill out if they are interested in joining the RSCO.

As details are being finalized, stay tuned for more information about Hurst Harmonics following Spring Break from Turpin and Bolling.

Mercyhurst Staff Senate donated more than $600 to SafeNet Erie for the fall 2022 Jeans for a Cause fundraiser. The faculty and staff at Mercyhurst have the opportunity to participate in the Jeans For A Cause campaign. Each semester they hold a variety of fundraisers to raise money for a specific charity in the Erie community.

Every semester, the executive committee of the Staff Senate selects five nonprofit organizations that operate in the Erie community.

Those five organizations are then voted on by the entire staff senate and the organization with the most votes is the recipient of whatever is fundraised that semester. SafeNet was the one that was selected for fall 2022.

SafeNet provides domestic violence, abuse advocacy and support.

They use the slogan “reclaim your life.” On their website, there is a hotline number to call if you are in a crisis and information about the services they pro - vide including, safety planning, counseling, support groups, legal advocacy and domestic violence education and advocacy. There is also a shelter with 45 beds where people can stay for up to 30 days to give them an alternate housing option to get back on their feet.

SafeNet has helped countless people get out of dangerous situations and reclaim their life for themselves.

This is an important cause that is fueled by donations and every little bit helps so this was a great organization for the Staff Senate to select as the recipient of the donation.

Jeans For A Cause has been a Mercyhurst tradition for a long time. During Thomas Gamble’s administration, which was from 2006-2015, staff and faculty began wearing jeans and MU gear and donating the money to local causes. Eventually, it was incorporated into the Staff Senate to be run by faculty and staff. The main fundraiser is when staff and administrators are encouraged to wear jeans and Mercyhurst gear if they donate $2 to the fund.

Justin Ross, Ph.D., the President of the Staff Senate said, “It’s a bit like ‘casual Friday’ turned to good use!”

There was also a Chili Cook-Off for the staff where several people made their own chili and brought it in and then anyone could try all the different types of chili and vote on their favorite if they donated $5. The event in early February raised nearly $200 for the cause.

This year’s winners were Vicki Marzka for Best Traditional, Megan Fluegel for Best Nontraditional, a tie between Shelly Berlin and Justin Ross for Best Texas, Jenell Patton for Best Vegetarian and Megan Fluegel for Best Overall. Each winner received a trophy!

The next fundraiser that the organization will be participating in will most likely be a basket raffle in April. If for some reason this is not able to be achieved, then the next fundraiser will be in the fall.