Badger fans help raise nearly $60,000 for hurricane victims

Badger football fans helped raise $59,478.54 for American Red Cross hurricane relief efforts during the Bowling Green game on Saturday, Sept 3.

A group of 40 Fan Ambassadors, along with another 25 student-athletes and staff members, collected approximately $24,478.54 in donations from fans outside Camp Randall Stadium. The UW Athletic Department and the National W Club also will contribute $35,000 as a portion of concession stand sales.

“I want to thank all Badger fans for their generosity and concern for the people of the Gulf Coast who have been affected by this terrible disaster,” says UW–Madison Chancellor John D. Wiley.

In addition to monetary contributions, UW–Madison is opening its doors to help students enrolled at universities closed by the hurricane.

To date, the university has enrolled 12 Wisconsin residents as freshman, and accepted another 64 into programs of the Division of Continuing Studies. Since last week, the Office of Admissions reports receiving 150 calls per day from students seeking more information about relocating to Madison, along with another 100 email inquiries.

The university will also work to revise financial aid packages for current UW–Madison students from affected areas in need of additional assistance.

Fans unable to attend Saturday’s game that would like to contribute to the American Red Cross relief efforts may do so by calling 1-800-HELP-NOW or visiting http://www.redcross.org.

For more information on UW–Madison’s hurricane response, visit http://www.news.wisc.edu/hurricane/.