Jon Sheffield, 4LS
On behalf of the Inter-Residence Hall Association (IRHA), I would like to thank those who prepared for and attended our "World Record Water Balloon Fight against Breast Cancer."
I especially want to thank the Department of Housing and the many other university offices that helped. While these advisers and staff could have written the idea off and said the event was too prone for problems; they did not. Instead, they asked, "How can we do this correctly?"
The event was a spectacular success, and we owe that success to the many organizations and people who helped create it.
Less than two months ago, Phillip Sussman and Sheldon Clark, IRHA's sports directors, came to IRHA with the idea of having this event. We knew it would be a risky endeavor requiring a lot of work with little preparation time.
The success of the program was stunning, with 2,517 registered people in attendance throwing more than 55,584 balloons. We raised more than $1,600 to fight breast cancer.
I cannot express how glad I am that we took the risk, and how proud I am of those, especially the UF student body, who came out in full force despite inclement weather.
Record breaker or not, people who attended said it was amazing, and it was. If you didn't make it, you missed a once-in-a-lifetime experience. As for breaking a world record, there is always next year.
IRHA sincerely and wholeheartedly thanks everyone who helped fight breast cancer with water balloons!
