By Chris Muller

Since 1992, the NIRSA Foundation has been raising money to support its mission to enhance the collegiate recreation profession by providing NIRSA members with meaningful opportunities for professional development. At each NIRSA Annual Conference & Recreational Sports Expo, the Foundation offers attendees engaging events and activities like the Golf Tournament, the Community Service Project, and the Quilt Raffle.

The Quilt Raffle is the capstone event for the Foundation’s annual T-Shirt Competition. The raffle winner will be randomly drawn from all the tickets sold throughout the 2015 Annual Conference, which is taking place at the Gaylord Texan from Marc 30–April 2. The 2015 quilt, designed and quilted by Roy Easley, is a display of the winning T-shirts from the 2014 Foundation T-Shirt Competition.

The idea for the Quilt Raffle originated with Sue Ivie Boling, the 2009 NIRSA Honor Award Winner, who thought it would add a fun twist to the T-Shirt Competition. The raffle has been a conference staple ever since. Sue made the first four quilts, and the tradition has yet to falter:

  • Sue Ivie Boling, Virginia Commonwealth University (retired), 1987-1990
  • Paula Opal, Texas A&M University, 1991-2004
  • Jacque Hamilton, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2012
  • Roy Easley, Cal Poly Pomona (retired), 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2015

Raffle tickets to win the 2015 quilt will be available for purchase at the NIRSA Foundation Table and at the Hoop Shoot located in the Expo Hall—scholarship recipients will also be walking around the conference selling tickets. Tickets are $1 each, $5 for six tickets, or $10 for 15 tickets. They will be sold until the start of the Closing General Session on Thursday, April 2, which is where the winner will be announced. So stop by the NIRSA Foundation Table this conference to view the quilt and purchase your raffle tickets!

Won’t be attending the 2015 NIRSA Annual Conference & Recreational Sports Expo? Don’t let that stop you from trying to win the quilt! Work with your campus recreation colleagues who are attending NIRSA 2015 and start a collection to bring a piece of NIRSA back to your campus. In previous years the quilt has been won by individuals, friend groups, and universities. We look forward to your help in making the 2015 NIRSA Foundation Quilt Raffle a true success!

 

For more information about the NIRSA Foundation Quilt Raffle, please contact NIRSA Leadership Programs Coordinator Sarah Leskovec.