Queen’s Rotaract Club hosted their event “Trumping Poverty Through Euchre” featuring resident student musicians Devan & Khalid.
The club’s mandate focuses on humanitarian work through putting youth in action, said Cindy Lang, Queen’s Rotaract Club co-director.
“Essentially the goal is service above self,” said Lang, ArtSci ’16.
Hosted at The Grad Club on Monday, the event was a euchre tournament — a type of competitive card game — accompanied by mellow music from Devan & Khalid.
“I think [Devan & Khalid] are really talented,” Lang said before the show. “I’ve listened to their songs probably 10 times today, they’ll do a good job.” The club’s decision to feature Devan & Khalid as musical entertainment after the tournament was a good one — the band brought a good amount of energy to the venue without being overwhelming.
The duo, Devan Glover and Khalid Yassein, are originally from Toronto but are both fourth-year students at Queen’s. They released their new EP This Town on Bandcamp in February 2014 and have been playing shows in the Kingston and Queen’s community.
Devan & Khalid’s indie folk sound fit in perfectly with the vibes at Queen’s Rotaract Club’s event.
The duo played their music for forty-five minutes, creating a relaxed atmosphere at the event.
“I figured that their style is very relaxed, so it’s a good follow up to [the tournament],” said Paige Mackinnon, the organization’s other co-director. The club is a younger chapter of Rotary International, an international organization that participates in local and global volunteer initiatives.
The event was held in order for the club to raise money for their annual two-week long outreach trip to Prince Edward Island.
In partnership with Habitat against Humanity, Queen’s Rotaract Club used an intensive application and interview process to select 13 students to travel to rural P.E.I.
Queen’s Rotartact Club has chosen to go to P.E.I due to the shortage of local volunteers. The area has seen an increase in poverty rates following a downturn in the local economy, coupled with a lack of infrastructure.
These students will build a home for an eligible family determined by a separate screening process by the club. Their tournament-style event was inspired by the club’s travellers as they brainstormed ideas for campus fundraisers to fund their trip.
“A couple of travellers knew how to play euchre and thought that would be a good idea,” said Mackinnon, ArtSci ’15.
Although Queen’s campus has seen euchre tournaments before, this is the first time this event has been held for the sake of charity.
“We know that there have been a couple on campus before but never for charity,” Mackinnon said.
In total, the fundraiser brought in about $650 for the club.
Queen’s Rotaract Club will continue to have fundraisers throughout the year to fund the remainder of their trip.
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