By: Julie Faryniarz
Registration for the Greenwich Alliance’s Trivia Challenge 2021 is open! Our annual event will be on March 19th and — no surprise — it will be virtual. This means that ticket prices are only $50/person, and most importantly, your family and friends from far and wide can join the competition. We are counting on our community to participate and help us raise critical funds for the Greenwich Alliance for Education. Register here https://greenwichalliance.schoolauction.net/trivia2021/
How can you help us raise funds? First, we’re fortunate to have a generous donor who is offering to match donations up to $25,000 for the Greenwich Alliance Scholarship Fund. You can donate during our paddle raise at the Trivia Challenge or via our website. Second, we have an online auction open to anyone in the community, whether or not you play the Trivia Challenge. The auction will be live in early March. In the meantime, do you have an interesting auction item to donate? Please let us know about it here. https://greenwichalliance.schoolauction.net/trivia2021/donate_items/new
One of the reasons we think our Trivia Challenge is the best in town is that the questions are written by Christine Kim, former chair of the Alliance. She is a 20-year Greenwich resident, a two-time “Jeopardy!” champ, avid crossword puzzler, and occasional Sporcle addict. She writes questions catering to the diverse community of educators, parents, bankers, lawyers, volunteers, Millennials, Gen Xers and yes, Boomers, who come out to play trivia every year to support the Alliance. As a nod to our passion for education, there are always trivia questions from the Greenwich Public School curriculum. This year as always, there will also be some Greenwich-specific questions, but they are tailored to a national audience. So be sure to invite your smart cousin in Nebraska, your Scrabble-playing aunt in Florida, and your gamer nephew to join your team!
What happens when you support the Greenwich Alliance by playing in the Trivia Challenge or donate to our other fundraisers? Listen to Miguel R.’s story. He just got accepted to Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT).
Miguel is a graduate of the Greenwich High School (GHS) AVID* program. Here is how Nancy, Miguel’s Greenwich Alliance AVID SUCCESS Mentor, describes her mentee’s path: “I started mentoring Miguel after his GHS graduation, when he was discouraged because he could not afford to attend the 4-year colleges that accepted him. Instead, Miguel reluctantly matriculated at the local community college. We met regularly and talked about school, his finances, buying a car, helping his family and pursuing his goal of getting a 4 year degree from a good college.
“Fast forward almost 5 years to today. Miguel is ready to complete a software engineering or computer science degree at RIT. His academic performance continuously improves and he gets rave revues from his employers. He has a car and is saving money for school. He has been a great support to his family and also helps GHS AVID students with college and career preparedness.”
We are currently recruiting mentors for the Greenwich Alliance’s AVID SUCCESS Mentoring Program. Please contact Julie Faryniarz at julie@greenwichalliance.org to learn more.
Another reason you might support the Greenwich Alliance is because you are a strong believer in instrumental music education. Armin O., a student in our Tuning In To Music program, will be attending Skidmore College in the fall. He recently shared this with me. “ In fourth grade, I was blessed to be nominated and accepted to join the Tuning In To Music program. My 8 years in the program helped me master the violin. I have had wonderful teachers who have been dedicated to providing students like me with high-quality instruction; these are lessons that would otherwise cost thousands of dollars! These lessons provided me with the confidence and preparation to audition for various music festivals and ensemble groups, which would eventually lead me to perform at Carnegie Hall.”
It is so rewarding for me to know both Miguel and Armin and to have the opportunity to share their stories through this column. They represent the “why” we do what we do at the Greenwich Alliance*.
So here is my call to action – register for Trivia Challenge 2021! Invite your friends to join you in this fun competition all while supporting the Alliance. Here are a couple of Trivia Teaser questions from Christine to entice you to join in and play:
● What is the name of the tequila brand founded by George Clooney and Rande Gerber?
● The equator passes through 13 countries (including two countries for which the equator passes through their waters, but not their land masses). All but three of these 13 countries are in either South America or Africa. Name any of these three non-African, non-South American countries.
● A longtime (Over three decades) Town employee has a name which can be anagrammed to “CLERK IN A BAD SLUM”. One hopes this is not a description of their role! Who is this?
● Visit www.greenwichalliance.org for the answers
*Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) is an internationally recognized college-readiness system designed to close the achievement gap and promote equity and access in education. AVID was brought to the GPS by the Alliance in 2008. Since then, more than 200 students have graduated from the GHS AVID program.
*The Greenwich Alliance for Education addresses the persistent opportunity gap by leveraging resources and building partnerships to guarantee all students achieve academic success and a promising future. We do this through offering and funding a variety of programs in partnership with Greenwich Public School educators.
