The Illini Secular Student Alliance (ISSA) will host a Light the Night charity walk for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) on the University of Illinois campus on Oct. 19 at 7:30 p.m. All proceeds from the walk will benefit LLS. The walk will begin between Engineering Hall and Everitt Laboratory on the north side of Green Street across from the Illini Union, which is located at 1401 W. Green St. in Urbana.
There is a required donation of $5 to walk. With admission participants are automatically entered to win door prizes that have been donated by local businesses. The first 80 walkers to arrive and donate will receive a sandwich from Silver Mine Subs. Gift certificates from Fat Sandwich, Maize, and more are among the available prizes.
Mayor of Champaign Don Gerard will be in attendance to give opening remarks.
Last year, ISSA raised $2000 for LLS through their efforts, which included a Light the Night Walk, a month-long “Hug An Atheist” fundraiser, and individual efforts from ISSA members. ISSA Outreach Chair Ellen Andrews hopes that this year’s walk will be even more successful than the last.
“I’m hopeful about having a larger turnout this year and making ourselves more visible to our local community,” she said. “This is a wonderful event that brought our group together in the name of serving a greater good. I think it is a great opportunity to show what our community of nonreligious students stands for.”
Anyone unable to attend the walk can also make donations through ISSA’s Light the Night Walk Team Fundraising Page. The Stiefel Freethought Foundation will match all donations up to $250,000 made to LLS through ISSA and select allied organizations.
ISSA is an RSO at the U of I dedicated to establishing a supportive social network for the nonreligious student community on campus, in addition to acting as an educational and philanthropic institution both on campus and nationwide. Since its founding in 2007, ISSA has participated in local community service as well as fundraised for the Youth Service Bureau of Illinois Valley and victims of the 2011 earthquake in Japan.