Augustana’s Moroccan Student Union (MSU) hosted a fundraiser on Wednesday, Nov. 15 in the Office of International Student and Scholar Services (OISSS) Lounge, featuring kittens and skincare. The fundraiser was to support the Animal Aid Humane Society in Moline, IL. MSU offered both skincare and beauty products, specially shipped from Morocco. Students were also able to play with two special kitten guests from the shelter.

MSU laid out adoption and fostering applications for the shelter kittens at the fundraiser. According to MSU President, junior Rime Tlih, the union’s goal was not only to raise money but to find a home for the animals.

“What college students can do is foster them, meaning they take them in and keep them for a week, month or however long you want,” Tlih said. “This way, we can train them to be better behaved around humans.”

Tlih said she had previously fostered the two kittens that were present at the event. 

“I think the main reason I wanted to do this fundraiser is because I, myself, have fostered and have a pretty tight relationship with the owner,” Tlih said. 

All products featured in this event were ordered and shipped from Morocco. MSU Treasurer, sophomore Adam Seffar, expressed the importance of authenticity in the products sold in their fundraisers. 

“MSU wants original products from Morocco, so we don’t buy it from here,” Seffar said.

At the fundraiser, there was a table filled with products. MSU members working the table were there to explain information about each product. There were also pamphlets at the event with all of the product’s information, as well as note cards that explained how to use the products.

First-Year Zharick Espinal attended the fundraiser and bought some of the items MSU had for sale. He said he found it enjoyable yet informative.

“All the products work really well, and it was such a fun event,” Espinal said. “The kittens were so calm, and you could tell everyone at the table knew what they were talking about when it came to the products they were selling.”

This was MSU’s first year hosting this fundraiser. According to Tlih, in the future, they are hoping to bring more animals onto campus and even sell more products. Despite being the first year of this event, MSU is really proud of the outcome. 

“I think the level of interest was surprising,” Tlih said. 

According to Tlih, MSU sold more of the products than they were expecting, but it wasn’t just about the profit. 

“It was very heartwarming to see that people were interested in wanting to learn more about the [Moroccan] culture,” Tlih said.