March Mingle Luau seeks to raise funds for CISTA

Communities in Schools of the Tecumseh Area (CISTA) will be holding its March Mingle Luau at the Smith Recreation Center from 6 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, March 12. The event raises funds for several of CISTA’s programs, including ROX (Ruling Our Experiences), summer programming, mentoring and tutoring, and provision of basic need items for students. Heather Perez, executive director of CISTA, says this year’s March Mingle theme is a Hawaiian Luau to inspire guests to hide away from the cold and pretend they’re in a tropical paradise while they help raise money for the organization.

“We’re here to meet the needs of the school district and we do that through March Mingle,” Perez said.

Last year, 49 percent of CISTA’s support came from fundraisers and events like March Mingle. During the 2015 fiscal year, CISTA raised $116,519 through contributions and other forms of support.

A silent and live auction will take place at Saturday’s event, with some of the biggest items on auction being free braces from Hinesly Orthodontics, a gas grill from Martin’s Home Center and Disney Theme Park hopper passes. Twelve different Tecumseh restaurants will be present at the event to offer food tastings and guests are invited to dress in Hawaiian garb. Tickets are $45 each with entertainment from DJ Tim Brown.

“We are a drop-out prevention program meant to surround students with a community of support, empowering them to achieve in school and in life,” Perez said of CISTA.

According to Perez, 99 percent of Tecumseh’s student body has been touched in some way by the programs CISTA provides. CISTA also coordinates 1,500 volunteers every year within the district, providing over 4,500 hours of volunteer service to Tecumseh Public Schools.

“We assess the needs of the district and provide community resources for students,” Perez said. “We wouldn’t be able to help provide mentoring, or other programs, without the March Mingle.”

Some of CISTA’s other programs include post secondary and career development, initiatives to improve school climate, and integrated service support. Some projects include distributing food packages to students on Fridays in order to provide nutrients over the weekend, helping with eye care assistance and distributing clothing for students K-12.

One of CISTA’s primary goals is to address underlying reasons why students drop out of school and use the funding March Mingle provides to help these students stay in class. “We work with the ten percent of kids not graduating and bring in additional resources in support of these students,” Perez said. “We’re focused on getting these kids to graduation.”