For the second year, UC Merced’s Student Alumni Association (SAA) and Office of Alumni Relations have partnered to host Student Philanthropy Month in March. The monthlong initiative is dedicated to building a culture of philanthropy and awareness at UC Merced.
Through events and fundraising opportunities, students have learned how philanthropy affects the campus, community and beyond. Following the initiative’s success in 2022, organizers have been excited to see increased interest this year.
“Philanthropy doesn’t only refer to the act of giving money. Each week, students have been engaged in events and opportunities with different themes — leading, serving, giving and engaging — to understand how much of a positive impact one can make by also sharing expertise, time and experiences,” Executive Director of Annual and Special Giving Amber Flores said. “It’s been amazing to see even more students participating in Student Philanthropy Month, and our hope is that they will one day give back in the same spirit as others have generously given to them.”
Dinner for Champvocates
A “Dinner for Champvocates” March 2 helped kick off the monthlong celebration. More than 50 students attended the dinner at the UC Merced Conference Center, where they learned what philanthropy means and how they can engage in meaningful activities to give back.
UC Merced alumni were on hand to share the philanthropic work they have been involved in within the nonprofit sector, including Ahmed “Mike” Alamari (’12) and Keith Ellis (’12).
Alamari graduated with bachelor’s degrees in economics and management. After working with the California Association of Agricultural Laborers and noticing that the vast number of regulations affecting farm labor contractors correlated to payroll processing, he opened his company, Precise Payroll & Bookkeeping in Madera, to address that need.
Since 2019, Alamari has supported and coordinated clothing drives, fundraisers, sponsorships for scholarships and more.
Ellis obtained bachelor’s degrees in political science and management at UC Merced. He also holds master’s and doctoral degrees in education from other institutions. He is the treasurer of the Alumni Associations of the University of California and an Alumni Regent-designate; he will serve as an Alumni Regent for one year beginning July 1.
Ellis has been part of several boards and commissions, and has also volunteered for multiple organizations, including the Sacramento LGBT Community Center.
Community advocate, educator and paralegal Michael Baldwin served as the keynote speaker for the “Champvocates” event. He discussed how after serving 26 years of a double-life sentence, he was released with a specific goal to use his life experience to bring healing and understanding to traumatized and marginalized groups, as well as equity to the community.
“There comes a point in all of our lives where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river, and we need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in,” he told the crowd.
Baldwin started MBS Consultants to educate and train teachers, law enforcement, civil servants and paraprofessionals to be the bridge between those who serve and those in need of services. He also founded Legacy Alliance Outreach, a nonprofit organization that addresses the needs of disadvantaged youth. Formerly incarcerated individuals are also trained to share their experiences with young people.
“It’s been revolutionary to be able to teach people that we can give more than just money to issues; sometimes we have to give up our perspective in order to hear other people’s perspectives,” Baldwin said. “As a result of that, I felt it was important to do more than just educate our educators and law enforcement; if we don’t do anything for our youth, then we haven’t solved anything.”
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