Members of the Illini Mentor Program held an end-of-the-year surprise party for the children they mentor Thursday.

The Illini Mentor program is a campus organization. Its members volunteer to mentor children of kindergarten through high school age at the Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club of Champaign.

For the first part of the party the mentors set up games for the children to play, including freezedance, Bozo buckets and basketball. The mentors played the games with the children, cheered them on and encouraged them. The children earned candy as prizes when they won the games.

After the games, there was a pizza party and an awards ceremony for the children. They received certificates for being involved in the mentor program.

To raise money for activities, including the surprise party, the program held a fund-raiser last Wednesday at the Goodrich Savoy 16 Theatres.

Stuart Schaff, president of the Illini Mentor Program, said the organization hosted the fund-raising event after normal business hours at the theater.

He said that tickets were sold only for the 11:30 p.m. showing of The Interpreter, and a percentage of the proceeds of ticket sales and some concession sales went towards operations of the Illini Mentor Program. Raffles were included with the concessions to encourage people to buy snacks.

“We’re raising funds to be able to ensure effective operation of the program, and we want to make sure we have the resources to give the best mentoring experience possible to the kids,” Schaff said.

Treasurer Jeremy Macklin organized the event. He said Savoy 16 was very helpful. They gave Illini Mentor a list of movies to choose from. Macklin said The Interpreter was the newest on the list, and they thought most fund-raiser participants would want to see it.

“This is a great way for people to have fun and to help out a great organization,” Macklin, sophomore in business, said.

Macklin said that Savoy 16 lowered the ticket prices so that Illini Mentor could buy them at $5.50, a dollar less than the normal cost, and then sell them for a little more. The organization charged $8, Macklin said. Everything past the $5.50 went toward the program.

Schaff said 75 people participated in the fund-raiser, and the program raised $140. Schaff said it was a good turnout, especially because the fund-raiser took place at a busy time of the semester and because there wasn’t much advertising.

“Some of my money is going to help some local kids, here,” he said.

After its first semester on campus, the Illini Mentor Program has around 80 students as active members who mentor children. Schaff said that he never expected that many volunteers when he started the program a few months ago.

Andrew Mann, freshman in LAS, mentors an 11-year-old fifth-grader. He said it’s satisfying to hang out with the kids at the Boys and Girls Club, and he thinks they like to hang out with older people.

And they do. Rachel Kravitz, sophomore in ACES, mentors a 6-year-old girl. Over time, they have become friends. Since the little girl is sad that the end of the semester is here and she won’t see her mentor over the summer, the two have decided to become pen pals.

“For our first semester, I think we did wonderfully,” he said. “It solidifies my feeling that service, here, is so valued in our University community.”