Misericordia University is holding the inaugural Mother's Day Champagne Brunch to benefit the Endowed Scholarship Fund for the Ruth Matthews Bourger Women with Children Program (WWC) on Sunday, May 8 in Sandy and Marlene Insalaco Hall. The family-friendly event is being hosted by the Bourger WWC Advisory Board. It will help provide tuition support for student mothers in the WWC program.
The menu includes scrambled eggs, potatoes, French toast, bacon, sausage, a waffle station, granola, yogurt, fruit, Danish pastries, muffins, salads, ham and turkey carving stations, brown sugar glazed salmon, sautéed green beans and tortellini Alfredo Florentine. Coffee, tea and soft drinks will be served along with Champagne, mimosa and Bloody Mary cocktails. A special children's buffet will feature macaroni and cheese, chicken fingers, French fries, corn, hot dogs, and an ice cream sundae bar with cookies. Doors open at 10:30 a.m.; brunch begins at 11 a.m.
There will be a "Parade of Baskets" raffle, with some baskets offering more than $500-worth of prizes. Live music will be performed by the Hoopla Trio Band.
"It is the hope of the Advisory Board to bring increased awareness of the program and to help our student mothers lower their tuition debt load," said Katherine Pohlidal, director, Bourger WWC. "They feel it is a very special way to support our student mothers by honoring all mothers. It will be a beautiful event, and a very worthwhile way to spend that very special day."
Tickets are $50 per adult and $20 for children 12-18 years of age. Children under 12 are admitted for free. Seating is limited. Reservations are required. Online registration can be completed by visiting cougarconnect.misericordia.edu/wwcbrunch16. For event information, or to register by telephone, please call Kim Caffrey, Office of Mission Integration, at (570) 674-1877.
Established in 2000, the Bourger WWC provides housing and support for academically qualified, single mothers at the poverty level and their children at two houses owned by Misericordia University. The program, one of only eight of its kind in the country, has seen baccalaureate degree graduates continuing in careers in nursing, education, communications, occupational therapy, social work, medical imaging, psychology, business administration and speech-language pathology.
The program currently has the capacity for 10 families: 10 single mothers with up to two children each. To date, 51 women have taken part in the WWC program. Although priority is given to women from Luzerne and Lackawanna counties, students from as far away as Utah have participated. Plans are underway to expand the program and a third home will be added in August.
For more information about the Bourger WWC program at Misericordia University, please call Katherine Pohlidal at (570) 674-6728 or log on to www.misericordia.edu/wwc.
Founded by the Sisters of Mercy in 1924, Misericordia University is Luzerne County's first four-year college and offers academic programs on the graduate and undergraduate levels in full- and part-time formats. Misericordia University ranks in the top tier of the Best Regional Universities – North category of U.S. News and World Report's 2016 edition of Best Colleges, and was designated a 2016 Best Northeastern College by the Princeton Review.
Caption:
Ruth Matthews Bourger Women with Children Program student April Lennon and her son, Gary, spend time together on campus in Sandy and Marlene Insalaco Hall. The novel program is hosting the inaugural Mother's Day Champagne Brunch to benefit the Endowed Scholarship Fund on Sunday, May 8. Doors open at 10:30 a.m. with the brunch beginning at 11 a.m.