Students Find Cause(s) to Celebrate

A 250-strong crew of Newcastle students have given their time this week to shake their buckets for six special charities, all in aid of Raising and Giving (RAG) Week. The student crew, from Newcastle University Students’ Union (NUSU), have held events all week such as a burrito-filled Man vs Food eating contest, a RAG Variety Show and Newcastle’s very own ‘Take Me Out’ to raise cash and awareness for charities including AGE UK Gateshead, CentrePoint and The Great North Air Ambulance. Hannah Goring, Activities Officer at NUSU, said: “RAG Week is one our most exciting and enjoyable events of the whole year at the Students’ Union as it’s a chance for students to have lots of fun whilst raising money for some fantastic causes both locally and nationally and on a global scale. “Our students have been incredibly generous both with their time and money and have put in so much effort to make this week possible.” NUSU and the RAG Crew raised £9000 in 2015 for their chosen charities, and hope to have the same success this year. All proceeds will be split evenly between the six charities and it is hoped that any funds raised will benefit those supported by the organisations. Hannah continued: “It’s been such a fantastic week and everyone has really enjoyed themselves. It’s great to see how keen students are to get involved with the local community and how the money raised actually makes a difference to our chosen charities and we hope that we can beat last year’s overall total. Crew members have been taking part in a whole host of events throughout the week, alongside NUSU’s Go Volunteer, to raise money through ticket sales and donations, including a Sports Day, a Vintage Tea Fair as well as a packed out Pub Quiz. Hannah said: “All of our events this week have been such a success, from our Barn Dance to Egg and Spoon Race. I can’t thank everyone that has donated enough; we really hope that we can make a difference and set the bar even higher for next year.”