Pub Night Date Auction Raises Funds for Harvard Cancer Society

With a couple extra dollar bills in their pocket and love in the air, more than 850 students came to Friday’s Pub Night in Loker Commons, hoping to buy both a date and a beer.

Friday’s pub night was preceded by a date auction hosted by the Harvard Cancer Society (HCS). Apart from enjoying the entertainment and company, the attendees also enjoyed Pinocchio’s pizza, beer, wine, and other beverages at cost, but partook of pretzels and other small crunchy snacks for free while enjoying the music of Orange Crush.

Many students were excited about the Cancer Society’s date auction, the first such event to be held at a Pub Night. The students being auctioned had creative ways to catch the audience’s attention. Francine M. Polet ’09, one of the dates being auctioned, danced to “Call On Me,” while other dates for sale tried to woo buyers with such romantic tunes as Barry White’s “I Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Babe” and Aladdin’s “Prince Ali.” Several of the people auctioned were well known campus personalities including former Undergraduate Council President Matthew J. Glazer ’06, First Class Marshal Tracy “Ty” Moore II ’06, Former Harvard Concert Commission Chair Jack P. McCambridge ’06, and Relay for Life officer Hannah K. Ahn ’08. Although the lowest bid was ten dollars, other bids were in the hundreds. Former Lowell House Committee Chair, Kaartiga Sivanesan ’06 set the record for the auction when she sold for the whopping sum of $282.

“I was initially a bit hesitant to be part of a date auction, but I’m so excited that the event was a success,” Sivanesan wrote in an e-mail.

Even though he did not set the record for bringing in the most money, Moore also said he had an overwhelmingly enjoyable evening.

“I had a phenomenal time on account of the positive energy in the building and the awesome spirit of the other participants in the auction,” he wrote in an e-mail.

Sangeetha M. Reddy ’06, co-president of the HCS, said the auction raised $2,412 . The money that the auction raised will be donated to one of the Relay for Life events which will take place in April and benefit the American Cancer Society, she said. Some students thought the addition of a date auction made the standard pub night more exciting.

“I think the Charity Auction made Pub Night pretty awesome,” said Nilam R. Shah ’06.

Even though they could not purchase beer or wine, underclassmen too appreciated the event, which was love themed for Valentine’s day.

“I thought Pub Night was a lot of fun and it was great that the date auction raised so much money. It was really romantic when this one guy put 250 dollars for Hannah Ahn,” said Victoria E. Clark ’08.

Following the auction, Orange Crush, an 80’s styled dance party band provided music while revelers danced below Styrofoam hearts and multi-colored lights.

Organizers and security involved with Friday’s party strove to make sure that the event was safe, as previous pub nights have filled Loker Commons to the legal limit. Ilya Luvish, who is Memorial Hall’s representative and has been working there for five years said that Pub Night has been a good addition to Loker’s lineup.

“Pub night is great for the Harvard community. It’s a safe way to drink and a good way to have fun. I think it should be here permanently,” he said.

Many underage students were a little upset at not being able to drink with their older peers.

“I think there was a really nice turnout. Of course, because I’m not twenty-one I can’t enjoy it as much as other people,” said Jennifer R. Popack ’08, who enjoyed the ambience of the event if not the refreshments. “The band was great.”

Some students pointed out ways in which future pub nights could be improved. Anthony D. Tijero ’09 suggested more hip-hop music, while Nicolae Done ’09 wanted U.V, lights.

Joyce E. Jauer ’06, a veteran of pub night, said that pub nights have helped the College improve social life.

“The other pub nights had fun decorations and costumes and it gave them a nice atmosphere. The music is always great. The University needs more outlets for social life and I think Pub nights will fulfill that,” she said.

Last spring, data leaked from an internal Harvard memo showed that student satisfaction ratings at Harvard College were significantly behind those of peer institutions.

The office of the University President allocated over $6 million this year to fund several construction projects aimed at increasing quality of life among undergraduates. The construction of a permanent pub in Loker Commons is scheduled for this summer.

“We’re trying to have it built and ready to go by next fall. We’re also planning on having more food tasting to get more student input,” Alexander J. Tennant ’08, a member of the Pub Night Commission said.

Tennant, who is a representative of Harvard Student Agencies said that the tentative date for the next Pub Night is St. Patrick’s Day in March and that the Pub Night Commission is thinking about partnering with the Senior Class Committee for the event.

—Staff writer Doris A. Hernandez can be reached at dahernan@fas.harvard.edu