‘Rock the Lot’ in Va. to Benefit Diviney

Note: This article doesn’t give the time and date. It is this Saturday, June 4th. It begins at 2:00 PM.

The Daily Athenaeum

By Mackenzie Mays

The event is sponsored by the National Capital Area Chapter of the WVU Alumni Association and will feature performances by five bands, in addition to other activities.

The organization has a set goal of $7,000 to raise for the benefit, with 25 percent of the proceeds going to Rally for Ryan, 70 percent donated to the ACS, and the rest benefiting the Arlington County Fire and Police Deptartment, according to Kim Wierzbicki, NCAC WVU Alumni vice president.

“I think everyone enjoys music, and I feel that this is a good way to get people out to enjoy the day and raise money for good causes,” Wierzbicki said. “It’s important, no matter what age, to give back to the community in some way.”

The NCAC WVU Alumni Association has been around for more than 30 years, Wierzbicki said, and is dedicated to assisting fellow WVU alumnus who live around the Washington, D.C. area and to staying connected to the University through different events.

“We play sports together, we organize and attend many events and we give back to the community throughout the year. Our mission is to keep the Mountaineer spirit alive around the nation’s capitol,” Wierzbicki said.

She said when the group started discussing its next event, Rally for Ryan was at the top of the list, since he is a former WVU student and is from a Northern Virginia suburb. Diviney’s story hit close to home for Wierzbicki, and she wanted to help.

“The events that surrounded Ryan’s horrific story pulled at my heartstrings. My junior year at WVU, my roommates and I helped a guy who was getting beaten up by three other young men,” Wierzbicki said. “I’m still appalled at the lack of help Ryan received directly after he was attacked.”

Weirzbicki also has a connection to the ACS. Her brother passed away when she was a freshman at WVU, after a five-year battle with cancer.

“I wanted to help out an organization that helped out my family in so many ways,” she said.

Josh Swiger, vocalist and bassist for The New Relics, the official band of the WVU Alumni Association, will be performing at the event, and said he’s honored to take part.

“We love to give back to the chapters outside of Morgantown to help them in any way we can. Anytime you can do a show to benefit others, especially for awareness and cancer, is a good thing,” Swiger said.

Swiger said he hopes to allow attendees a day to relax.

“We hope that we can bring to the stage an ability to forget about everything that is going on, and give people an opportunity for some stress relief,” he said.

“Sometimes the best thing you can do for others is to give them a few hours to get away from everything they’re dealing with.”