By Shane Trevor / Jambar Contributor
From The Beatles to Dolly Parton and even original pieces, three Youngstown State University professors performed musical numbers at Westside Bowl on Oct. 19, to the delight of dozens of spectators.
The third annual YSU Faculty in Concert Scholarship Fundraiser saw Matt O’Mansky, professor of anthropology, Brian Bonhomme, professor of history, and Ron Shaklee, professor emeritus of geography, each sing and play guitar.
Proceeds from the concert fund scholarships and programs for the anthropology and history department, as well as to the Sokolov Honors College.
“It’s great for us, it’s good for them. And it’s just something very different, very unusual, that people don’t expect,” O’Manksy said.
O’Mansky started the event two years ago to raise funds for the Meaghan Galloway Study Abroad Scholarship, which he founded. The scholarship provides funds to students who can’t afford to travel with the anthropology department on archeological digs.
Over $2,000 was raised from this year’s event, which O’Mansky said is on par with the other fundraiser concerts from previous years.
The event also consisted of a raffle to raise funds. 17 lots were raffled off, which consisted of paintings, candy, gift cards, candles, Lego sets, coffee mugs and more.
“We’re always pretty good. Brian’s great. I’m better than I thought I was, based on feedback. But it’s just a really fun time,” O’Manksy said.
The fundraiser saw each professor perform two sets. O’Mansky and Bonhomme both performed covers of various songs, while Shaklee mostly performed original pieces.
Three guest singers, consisting of a YSU student and two faculty members, also joined Bonhomme throughout his performance to sing duets.
“It’s a kind of nice event to get a few faculty and some students out. Students get to see that we’re not just boring old professors, but we’re boring old musicians as well,” Bonhomme said.
Nathan Offerdahl, owner of Westside Bowl, said bringing the community together is part of why he provides his venue for these concerts.
“It’s both about Youngstown as a community and about YSU as a community. I’m an alum [and,] we have YSU students that work for us, recent graduates that work for us,” Offerdahl said.
Raising funds for the community is a common occurrence at Westside Bowl. Offerdahl said he typically provides space for two to four fundraisers monthly for various charities and community groups.
“We’ve long been very good about being deeply ingrained in the community. Making this space a place not just for-profit type stuff, but for fundraisers for all different sorts of community groups,” Offerdahl said.