In an effort to support the mission of the American Cancer Society, the Whey Station and NoRA Cupcake Company sent their trucks to William Street on Friday, Nov. 21 to sell their products to late-night eaters. The trucks were open from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. and planned to donate a percentage of their proceeds to the Wesleyan chapter of Relay for Life.
Other Main Street businesses have had similar Relay for Life fundraisers in the past, but these were not as conducive to student participation due to their off-campus locations. However, using food trucks provided a better opportunity for the Wesleyan community to more directly support the goals of the charity.
“Our American Cancer Society Staff Liaison, Grace D’Amico, was working with NoRA Cupcake…and our committee thought that it would be more accessible to Wesleyan students if their fundraiser was with their truck, on campus,” said Gavriella Wolf ’15, a Wesleyan Relay for Life event coordinator. “That also made us think of the Whey Station because it’s such a popular truck, and it just so happened that the two companies have worked together in the past.”
Wolf said that the cooperation of the Whey Station, NoRA, and the campus Relay for Life committee made the event very simple to facilitate. The owners of both trucks were able to efficiently work out the logistics of the fundraisers while students involved with the committee took care of publicity.
Not even the bitter cold evening could prevent students from showing up to support the cause while satisfying their late-night sweet tooth and grilled cheese cravings. With 10 percent of the proceeds from each truck going to charity, Relay for Life was able to raise an impressive $215 for the American Cancer Society.
Given the success of the event, Wolf and the rest of the Wesleyan Relay for Life committee hope to continue raising money with the help of the two trucks in future efforts. They also hope to coordinate with the owners to have Relay-inspired products for sale.
“The trucks didn’t offer specialty items because this was sort of a trial run of a fundraiser for both them and Relay, so we wanted to keep to the basics, which everyone loves as it is,” Wolf said. “If we partner again with them in the future, we would love to have a Relay-themed cupcake or sandwich.”
Considering the already successful nature of campus food trucks including the Whey Station and Mamoun’s Falafel, it’s no surprise that the fundraiser was a triumph. Not only were students able to indulge in a gooey grilled cheese or a fluffy, decadent cupcake, they were even able to do so with the knowledge that they were helping a worthy cause.
“The event was great because it was asking people to go to something they already wanted to go to,” Wolf said. “Most people on a weekend night are dying to look for an excuse to go to a food truck on campus. Telling them that their late-night snacking would benefit a good cause like Relay for Life was the easiest sales pitch we’ve had to do.”