Fordham students furiously scribbled on white boards as Disney Mulan’s “I’ll make a Man Out of You” played throughout Dagger John’s.  Erinne Benedict, FCRH ’20, president of A Moment of Magic, called out that time was up and the teams raised their white boards in the air, excited to see if they got the answer right. This was the scene in McGinley basement on Wednesday, Sept. 18 , as A Moment of Magic foundation held its first ever Disney Trivia Night.

A Moment of Magic is a group of college students that dress up as various characters, including superheroes and Disney princesses, and go to hospitals to visit kids. Benedict said the club decided to host a Disney trivia night because a lot of people are drawn to the club because they get to dress up as Disney characters.

“I’m a major Disney fan so there was no reason not to, and when me and the fundraising team realized we wanted to do something for this month, we thought what better way to educate people on such a big issue during this time, as well as make it fun with something that’s themed with our organization,” said Benedict.

The club wanted to promote the fight against pediatric cancer as the semester started because September is pediatric cancer awareness month. They figured the best way to draw awareness was to do Disney trivia, she said.

“Childhood cancer is not rare by any means and I think it’s important that we let people know that and make sure that’s something that people understand because going gold for the kids and the fighters is a really big deal for this month,” said Benedict.

Gold is the color that represents pediatric cancer and to “go gold” is to spread awareness of pediatric cancer through gold themed events and gold ribbons. A Moment of Magic’s colors are purple and gold to represent pediatric cancer.

The night included three rounds of trivia. The first round was basic Disney facts ranging from characters names to what awards Disney films have won. During the second round, Benedict played a 10 second clip from a Disney song and participants had to guess the song title. The final round of questions tied back to September being pediatric cancer awareness month and were based on pediatric cancer facts.

At the end of the night, the three teams with the most points were awarded prizes. The prizes included SoulCycle passes, an Amazon gift card and Love Your Melon beanies. Benedict said Moment of Magic was particularly glad to include Love Your Melon as a prize, since the company donates some of its proceeds to pediatric cancer.

Rebecca Lees, FCRH ’21, said she had a great time and that trivia kept the attendants engaged as well as educated them on the realities of childhood cancer amid a night of fun competition.

“The final round of trivia with questions about pediatric cancer was a really cool way to reinforce the message of the club and to remind us of the reason the event was being held,” she said.

Samantha Heigel, FCRH ’20, said she knows of the organization because her friend is one of the club members who dresses up and goes on hospital visits.

“I went to A Moment of Magic trivia for some week-night fun and to support a great cause,” said Heigel. “The event was fun and informative. It coupled Disney songs and trivia with information regarding pediatric cancer month.”

This was the first time A Moment of Magic held Disney Trivia, but it holds other fundraisers throughout the year. Benedict said their big event for the fall semester is the Winter Ball, being held in December for the second time this year.

Benedict said the money they raise at events such as trivia go toward costume updates and travel expenses.  The club travels wherever it needs to visit a kid or family, and, being in the city, club members have to take a lot of public transportation.

Benedict said costume upkeep is key because cast members are looking for Disney World-tier quality.

“If kids go to Disney and then they see us, they’re seeing the same character,” she said. “We don’t want to break the magic for them.”

Princesses also bring gifts or toys to the kids they visit. Benedict said the club works with a company called the Magic Yarn Project, which makes yarn wigs sewn on a hat to mimic Disney princess hair. Princesses bring those to the hospital sometimes and often have to pay for them, according to Benedict.

“We do a lot of fundraising because everything that we do is free for the kids,” she said. “Parents don’t pay any money for us to come visit them or in the hospitals.”

Benedict said anyone who hears about the club can reach out to them. They work with individual families and hospitals and they do birthday parties, remission parties, etc.

The club does not limit themselves to individual children with pediatric cancer, but is willing to work with entire families regardless of situation.

“If a family unfortunately loses a child to the disease, which is unfortunately not uncommon, we also maintain that we can still do visits and keep in contact with families beyond,” she said.