Enloe High students’ pro-level fund-raising helps mentor kids. How you can help.
Enloe High School students are in the home stretch to raise money to support a group that wants to break the cycle of poverty for Southeast Raleigh families and for Latino families around Raleigh.
The Enloe Charity Ball, an annual event organized by the Raleigh magnet school’s student council, is trying to raise $165,000 by Saturday to support Neighbor to Neighbor. The Raleigh nonprofit runs a variety of programs, including after-school mentoring for students and creation of community-based businesses.
“The economy is not getting better,” Celine Ganyo, 17, an Enloe senior and student body president, said in an interview. “It’s getting worse, so we have faced some difficulties getting donations. But if you ask me, if I was a betting woman, I would bet on myself to hit the goal.”
Ganyo’s confidence is well-earned. Since the first ball in 2004, the annual event has raised $1.5 million for local nonprofit groups.
The fundraising will go on until the donation amount is announced Saturday at the sold-out 18th Enloe Charity Ball at Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh.
Organizers announced at the Ball that they had exceeded their goal and had raised $180,000.
Neighbor to Neighbor chosen from 17 applicants
It’s a major competition to be selected as the ball’s beneficiary.
Neighbor To Neighbor was a finalist last year before falling short to Alliance Medical Ministry. Enloe students went on to raise $180,000 to support Alliance Medical Ministry’s efforts to provide comprehensive medical care to more uninsured adult workers in Wake County.
Neighbor to Neighbor was chosen this year out of a field of 17 applicants. It was especially sweet for Spencer Hathcock, who is Neighbor to Neighbor’s program manager and a 2008 Enloe graduate.
“I really am thankful for my experience at Enloe,” Hathcock said. “I tell people all the time it’s one of the best public high schools in the area.
“I’m really proud of what the Enloe Charity Ball has been able to do in this area and what a ragtag group of high school students can pull off. “
The power of one-on-one mentoring
Neighbor to Neighbor won over the Enloe students with its mission of using one-on-one mentoring to help economically disadvantaged communities overcome the effects of poverty. On average, low-income students don’t do as well academically as more affluent peers.
Southeast Raleigh students at the group’s downtown Raleigh location and Millbrook Elementary students at Neighbor to Neighbor’s Aprendo learning center in North Raleigh receive a total of two hours a week of one-on-one tutoring. Each student is paired with two mentors who individually spend an hour per week with the child.
Neighbor to Neighbor said it could serve even more students with the ball’s funding.
“Neighbor to Neighbor has a lot of students from the elementary schools in the Southeast Raleigh community that feed into Enloe,” said Abby Ramsey, 17, an Enloe senior and student council vice president for service. “When we help the kids at these schools, we are helping Enloe in the future.”
Successful after-school tutoring program
Neighbor to Neighbor has worked with more than 10,000 students over the past 27 years. Hathcock said they’re seeing results such as 95% of students reaching grade-level proficiency in reading or math and 96% of students going on to graduate from high school.
“Students grow 1.3 grade levels per year on average, which is three times the national after-school average,” Hathcock said. “It’s a huge impact for just a one hour a week commitment and a really fun experience.”
Regan Lloyd is among the Enloe students who’ve been serving as after-school mentors for Neighbor to Neighbor. Lloyd said the tutoring is especially needed since many students fell behind academically during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s just such a strong sense of community and relationship building with everything with Neighbor to Neighbor,” said Lloyd, 18, an Enloe senior and student council vice president for finance.
Enloe students have helped out in other ways with Neighbor to Neighbor, including participating in workdays and holding a holiday party for the students in the after-school program.
“We’re there for them whenever they need something done,” said Ganyo, the student body president.
Enloe Charity Ball’s legacy
The legacy and expectations of the Enloe Charity Ball are a high bar that organizers know they have to uphold.
“When you think about it, the generations before us have set this legacy for us,” said Darcy Watts, 17, an Enloe senior and student council vice president for logistics. “We’re proud of everyone who came before us.”
For the students who are actively raising money, it’s a chance to show that teenagers can make a positive difference in the community.
“What Charity Ball helps me think of is that students, even though they are treated as kids, can still do adult things,” said Ramsey, the Enloe student. “It’s taking initiative. It’s taking action now. It’s very powerful to show someone ‘yes, I’m a kid, but I can still do this.’”
Long after the 18th Charity Ball is over, Watts said it’s comforting to know that the students who will come after them will carry on the tradition.
“Some of us may be going to college, leaving the area,” Watts said. “But the fact is we still know that people back home are working on this and are changing the community that we grew up in.”
How to donate
Go to enloecharityball.org for more information on the Enloe Charity Ball. Tickets are sold out for Saturday’s Charity Ball, but donations are still being accepted.
How to volunteer
Neighbor to Neighbor is looking for 60 more people to serve as mentors next semester. Volunteers will work one hour per week with the same student from either 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. or 5:45 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. Go to n2noutreach.org for more information.
This story was originally published December 14, 2023 at 12:51 PM.
