About 50 students gathered outside Peterson Hall 1 for an opportunity to win prizes and submerge volunteers into a dunk tank in between classes on Tuesday.
Sean Pellerin, graduate student and host of KBeach’s 3Up 3Down show, created the event with nonprofit organization Donate Life, to spread awareness about the need for organ and tissue donation.
“Who doesn’t like a dunk tank?” Pellerin said. “It’s something you can see from afar and publicizes something far better than a flyer.”
Organ and tissue donation is a sensitive subject that hits close to home with Pellerin.
“Donate Life was an organization that tried to help my friend’s father when he was in need of an organ,” Pellerin said. “He passed away because they were unable to find a donor.”
According to Donate Life, more than 100,000 people are on a waiting list for organ transplants and, every 13 minutes, a name is added to the transplant waiting list.
Pellerin advertised Donate Life on his radio show and has been planning the event for months.
“I’ve gone to fraternities and sororities to publicize the event to get a bigger turnout,” Pellerin said. “This all came together in the last week and a half.”
The radio show host got a donor sticker on his driver’s license as soon as he got it.
“If I can help someone else live when I’m dead, that would be pretty cool,” Pellerin said.
Tuesday was the first time Pellerin teamed up with Donate Life to spread awareness on this topic, but he is no stranger to volunteer work.
“I like doing community work and volunteering,” Pellerin said. “I like doing feel-good things for people