Campus ‘Fundracers’ Use Motorsports to Raise Money for Non-Profits

An non-Loyola-affiliated student organization, Campus Fundracers use the platform of amateur motorsports racing to build community and raise funds for philanthropic causes. 

Co-founders and fourth-year marketing majors Alexander Balaguer and Cirese Mendolia started Campus Fundracers in 2023 in an effort to merge their unique skill sets. Their respective backgrounds in marketing and motorsports contributed to the successes of the program thus far, according to Balauger. 

Balaguer said his affinity towards racing started at home, in North Andover, Massachusetts.  Throughout his life, he said he watched his dad compete in Sports Car Club of America and BMW Car Club of America, though he didn’t find himself behind the wheel until August 2023 when he began competing with his father. Since then, he said he’s been compelled to share the gift of racing with fellow Loyola students.

Now, Balaguer serves as team principal of Campus Fundracers. His role consists of overseeing all aspects of the team, including administrative, management and mechanical responsibilities, according to Balaguer.

Mendolia, vice president of Marketing and Fundraising, said she had extensive experience with fundraising and philanthropy at the beginning stages of Campus Fundracers. Within her role, she manages the team’s social media and serves as a liaison between brands and potential donors.

Following the excitement of Balaguer’s first race, he presented the idea of bringing amateur motorsports to Loyola students. He said the idea came together naturally due to his own racing knowledge and Mendolia’s fundraising expertise.

“It was out of a brainstorming session,” Mendolia said. “Once we had the name Campus Fundracers it materialized and is something tangible now. We wanted something to have as our own and also give to other people.”

As a part of racing culture, the team takes pride in flaunting the vehicles they race, which the Fundracers construct themselves. 

“We put in a lot of work and effort for a few months and it costs us thousands to go racing,” Balaguer said. “To see that all come together – loading the car up on the trailer and setting up on the track — it’s a very gratifying process.” 

In the span of approximately two months, Balaguer said the team transformed a 1990 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera into a car fit for endurance racing. The build process, photos and footage of the vehicle can be found on the team’s Instagram page. 

An essential part of Campus Fundracers’ mission is raising funds for local non-profit causes such as PAWS Chicago and Lemons of Love. Their current campaign is focused on The Farmer’s House, a not-for-profit organization based in Kansas City, Missouri, according to Mendolia. 

“It started around 15 years ago with a mission to provide job opportunities, community and social enrichment,” Mendolia said. “I have been rooted in the Farmer’s House since I was young. I was their first farmhand.” 

The Farmer’s House is an enrichment program for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the Kansas City metropolitan area, according to Dana Chatlin, director of developmental marketing at the Farmer’s House. She said one of the goals of the Farmer’s House is to give individuals in their job readiness, social engagement and post-graduate programs the skills to lead self-determined lives.

“Unlike their peers, a lot of kids with developmental disabilities aren’t getting job opportunities in high school,” Chatlin said. “They’re graduating without a lot of life skills and, particularly, no job skills. We knew that if we wanted to make serious change, we needed to prepare these kids for life after graduation.”

The Farmer’s House has experienced exponential growth since their Early Work Experience program started in 2012, according to Chatlin. Their collaboration with Campus Fundracers has expanded the Farmer’s House community throughout the past year.

“One of the great things is that they exposed our mission to many people in the Chicago area,” Chatlin said. “While we are Kansas City based, we found that there are so many people that connect to what we do because they know someone or have a family member with a developmental disability and they know how important these services are.”

The Campus Fundracers’ first race in September took place at Road America in Wisconsin, where they faced upwards of 150 teams. In the span of six hours, they were able to raise about $2,000 for The Farmer’s House, according to Mendolia.

The Farmer’s House is still accepting donations through their website, which can be accessed through the Campus Fundracers Instagram page.

As an organization unaffiliated with the school, Campus Fundracers have had to overcome their fair share of challenges, according to Balauger. 

“Initially, the route was to go through Loyola,” Balauger said. “The painful bureaucracy of setting up clubs or any sort of student organization was just too slow. We didn’t want to be deterred or wait to do this much longer, so we decided to go through it ourselves.”

Being third-years when their idea was formed, the founding pair felt it would be most beneficial to establish the club without the help of Loyola affiliation.The risk resulted in greater difficulties to officially launch the program due to a lack of funding, according to Mendolia. 

“I found it particularly challenging because, on the fundraising side, I’m in charge of raising money for our race car expenses,” Mendolia said. “ Doing that without any help was definitely challenging, but we found so many great supporters that were willing to hear our mission.” 

Despite obstacles, Campus Fundracers remained steadfast in supporting their original mission while immersing themselves in the small community of amateur motorsports. Without the help of donors, family and friends, the team wouldn’t have been able to compete in their first race, according to Mendolia. 

Second-year accounting and information systems student Anthony Landnes has witnessed the beginnings of Campus Fundracers as the team’s Accountant. Within his role, he said he keeps track of overall expenses, money that has been raised and budgeting.

Landnes has been a part of Fundracers for over a year now. He said he joined the team as a first-year with Mendolia’s encouragement and has been able to utilize his knowledge of accounting, information systems and Formula 1 to do something greater for the community. 

“Giving back to other people is a big thing to me,” Landnes said. “I always volunteered in high school and I felt like I didn’t have as many opportunities to give back in college yet. I figured if I can do something enjoyable to me I might as well do it.”

A relatively small operation, the Fundracers are constantly on the lookout for new talent and student involvement, according to Balaguer.

“We’re always looking to add ambitious folks to our team,” Balaguer said. “We see Fundracers as an intellectual playground for them to apply their classroom knowledge.” 

By reaching out and interacting with Campus Fundracers on social media, interested students can join the team, regardless of experience level. Mendolia said the team welcomes students of all majors who are willing to tap into their competitive spirits and support the team’s mission.

Balaguer and Mendolia said the team has improved their senses of problem-solving, patience and adaptability since first starting. 
Students who would like to learn more about Campus Fundracers or The Farmer’s House organization can access their LinkTree through the Instagram page @campusfundracers.