BMOC raises more than $52,000

By Mackenzie Rosenau
English ’26

On Feb. 21, Big Man on Campus (BMOC) raised more than $52,000 for the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer.

BMOC is a male pageant that the Theta Phi Alpha sorority at Trine University hosts every year to raise money toward fighting breast cancer. This year’s total was the most BMOC has ever raised, huge accomplishment for the sorority.

“We had a historic year and raised $52,876, which is just incredible. The most we raised in the past was $52,037.69. To beat that shows how much Theta Phi Alpha pushes the bar each year to do even better than we have before,” said Haley Tomczak, BMOC chair for Theta Phi Alpha.

At the end of the event, awards are given to contestants who performed the best and raised the most money. The title of BMOC Winner was awarded to Student Government representative Gavin Kruise, a finance major from Milan, Michigan, while the award of Mr. Pink Ribbon was awarded to Jonathan Ibarra, a civil engineering major from Athens, Michigan, representing Sigma Phi Delta.

Tomczak said, “The contestants performed so well and put on an AMAZING show! I could not have been more grateful for such a rewarding and heartwarming experience. I will cherish this event for a very long time!”

The sisters of Theta Phi Alpha put a lot of work into this event in the months leading up to the pageant, from planning fundraisers to marketing on social media.

“The planning process was a year-long process that required a lot of attention to detail and communication. We do smaller events leading up to BMOC such as a pickleball tournament in the fall, Pink Week, where we sell T-shirts, and Dine to Donate events with Culvers right in town. We also did Theta Pied right on campus where students were able to pie a contestant in the face for $1,” Tomczak said.

Tomczak credits the abundance of love and support from the community for the success of this event. She says, “To see the support from our community directly affecting our cause was such a heartwarming experience.”  

While Tomczak was the chair of BMOC, her fellow sisters of Theta Phi Alpha helped her along the way. She said the event would not be possible without their added hard work and dedication to make BMOC a success.

“It truly takes a village to make this event happen and Theta Phi will do what it takes to make those who have been affected by cancer feel like they are not alone,” she said.