Students lead fundraising effort for McDougal family
Andrew Glass |
On Nov. 14, Phi Sigma is hosting their second annual date auction to benefit the McDougal family. Over 40 of the most eligible student bachelors and bachelorettes will walk the runway of the University Theatre in hopes to raise a large donation for the family’s home construction project, “A House for My Kids.”
The event is driven by the success of last year’s show which raised over $5000 for the family. Ashley Portell, senior and Phi Sigma chaplain, recalls the excitement of telling the family the total amount that had been raised throughout the auction.
“It was such a magical night,” Portell said. “Money was pouring out from everywhere. We never had guessed that we would raise so much money in just one night. They are such an amazing family to raise money for. They benefit from it so much. It’s also such a great chance for everybody to come together and support the family.”
Portell is coordinating the auction this year along with Ellen Minor, junior and Phi Sigma service coordinator. This year, the auction will be hosted by seniors William Clay and Tyler Vickery. Contestants are asked to pick a theme song and attire for their runway showcase. Members of the student body then bid against each other to win a date, while contributing to a wonderful cause. Last year, Alex Stevens (’07), raised over $500 alone during his appearance on stage. Unlike last year’s auction that featured only men from campus, this year girls will take the stage as well.
The McDougal’s have become a dear family to the student body at Lipscomb and continues to be the focus of many benefit events held by clubs around campus. Greg McDougal is a former songwriter for EMI records here in Nashville. He wrote and helped produce the popular country group, Blackhawk. He also had a song recorded by country legend, John Michael Montgomery.
Soon after Greg and his wife, Diane, had their first son Jeffrey, nine, it was apparent to the couple that God had a different plan for their lives than they had intended. Jeffrey was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis Aspergillus (CF), a disease that affects the mucus membranes in the body, primarily in the lungs, liver, intestinal tract, and pancreas. CF causes the mucus to build up in these areas and makes it difficult for the body to break it down.
Two years later, the McDougals had their second son Sean, seven, who was also diagnosed with CF. After another two years, the couple had their third child and first daughter Katie, five, who was not diagnosed with the disease. Greg and Diane decided to have one more child Grace, three, and she too was diagnosed with CF. With the majority of the family’s finances going towards the medical attention for their children, Greg has slowly removed himself from the music business, becoming a self-employed home repair contractor.
Along with many surgeries and antibiotics that the children must take daily, a new problem arose for the couple. Greg soon learned that allergens, such as mold and bacteria, were growing in their home in places such as the carpet, duct work, and the ventilation. People that have no problems with their mucus membranes are unaware of these allergens since they are immune. For the McDougal children though, living amongst the allergens became a dangerous situation.
The family then moved to a rental home, but the children’s health showed no improvement and the allergens were present once again. Determined to build an allergen free home for his children, Greg began looking for a way to generate help and support for his family’s greatest need.
Leslie Shepherd, senior and Phi Sigma athletic director, attended church with the McDougal family and been a frequent babysitter for the children since she was 16. Shepherd always knew that she wanted to do something special for the family, but could never figure out what that might be.
“Their family was constantly in my prayers and one day God just opened the doors for me to broadcast the McDougal’s situation to the world,” Shepherd said.
Shepherd, along with friend a recent graduate, Kacy Haggerty, decided to enter a “Biggest Country Music Fans” video contest just for fun. The duo’s video went on to win the contest, beating out hundreds of other hopefuls. After winning the competition, the girls were flown to New York City to meet country megastar, Kenny Chesney, and an appearance on Good Morning America in Times Square. Chesney was so impressed with the two that he invited them to ride back with him to Nashville in his private jet and gave them both backstage passes to his performance at the CMT awards that night. Then, when the girls didn’t think it could get any better, Chesney called them out on stage to help him sing the hit single, “Summer Time”.
In the days that followed Shepherd was contacted by several local newspapers and country radio stations wishing to interview the pair about their experience with Chesney.
“I started thinking that is was so weird that they just wanted to talk to us about our trip to New York,” Shepherd said. “Then it just dawned on me that this was the opportunity God had given me and Kacy to share about the McDougals with others.”
The girls decided to have a video made that they could give to the stations which would not only show clips of their trip to meet Chesney, but also showcase the McDougal’s and their need for support.
“It was just the whole principle, ‘to whom much is given, much is required’,” Shepherd said. “We’ve been given so much and we wanted to pay it forward by raising awareness and getting people involved with the family.”
Despite all the big name stations and channels in town that did a special on the McDougals, Lipscomb students have taken the lead on repeatedly following through to support the family.
“Last year’s students really rallied around the family,” Shepherd said. “We want to provide that same opportunity this year for students to get involved with helping and supporting the family.”
All students are encouraged to come, enjoy and participate in the auction.