VIDEO: Community Raises Money For Good Campus Cause

WEST POINT, Miss. (WCBI)- It’s something that affects families across the nation, addictions.

To help put a stop to these addictions and add to the recovery process of college students, citizens gathered in West Point to raise funds for a Mississippi State organization.

It’s called the Campus Recovery Community.

It’s fairly new to MSU’s campus, but with efforts like this from alumni and generous donors it seems it won’t take long for students to have an addiction-free college career.

It’s inspiring to see a community come together for something they believe in, but a nice meal and some big ticket auction items wouldn’t hurt to add into the mix.

It’s all part of what the CRC of Mississippi State held at Old Waverly Golf Course in West Point, to raise money for a good cause.

“We wanted to fundraise so we could offer our students scholarships, our recovering students scholarships,” said Eileene McRae, Co-President of the CRC.

To draw attention for this fundraiser, McRae used her connections to bring famous chef and personal friend, Robert St. John, as well as famous painter, Wyatt Waters.

“I was talking about wanting to do something for Mississippi State and he (St. John) just said ‘Eileene , tell me how I can help you and I will.’ So I thought about it for a while, and we came up with this idea,” said McRae.

“They called, and it was a no-brainer. I mean, it took about five seconds to talk me into it, and I was tickled to death when I called Wyatt and he said right away ‘we’d be happy to help,'” said St. John

St. John and Waters have been working together for over seventeen years, writing books and participating in fundraising events that they call duel demos, where both demonstrate their skills in cooking and art in front of an audience, and this cause is one that they were happy to be a part of.

“Anybody who’s honest has been affected by this, certainly. It’s a great program, and it also comes at a time in students careers when there may be more struggles than a lot of other times in their lives, so I definitely support that cause,” said Waters.

It’s wasn’t just the celebrity appearances who got the most out of the event.

University alumni and donors are also excited to see how this can affect the lives of MSU’s struggling students.

“I think it’s awesome. I understand what college young people go through. When you’re away form home and you’re on your own and everybody’s trying to find their identity, and unfortunately some of us get into this. It’s great to have an environment where you can come in and you can talk about it and you got support,” said former MSU/NFL lineman Glen Collins.

It takes a lot for an event of this size to be put on, but organization leaders and participants alike know that their efforts will be effective for their ultimate goal.

“Students who have been going to Mississippi State or are thinking about going to Mississippi State that are in some type of recovery program would be very welcome there, and it’s a great place to plug in and to be a part and get the full experience of college life,” said St. John.

“It’s like what I think about and dream about. I have a passion for this and for these students. Today, students don’t have to choose between their recovery and an education. Today, they can have both,” said McRae.

The CRC at MSU has only been around for the last four years, and being able to hold such a large fundraising event is an big accomplishment.

This could be a step in the right direction to a better life for a student who needs it.