Written by Rachel Farrell | Posted February 2025

When it comes to supporting BU, Kevyn Garcia (CGS’14, Questrom’16) doesn’t do anything halfway. In the past 10 years, the Phoenix-based sales executive has been a loyal donor to the University, member of the BU Young Alumni Council, member of the Questrom Women in Business Alumni Council, and two-time advocate for BU Giving Day.

But Garcia isn’t just any Giving Day advocate. In 2024, she was ranked No. 1 among 750—having raised 217 gifts and $6,270 for the BU Women’s Volleyball team in only 24 hours.

“I always strive to win, or at least do a good job,” she says.

A multipronged strategy

Garcia didn’t become the top-performing advocate by accident; she developed a thoughtful, multipronged strategy to maximize support for her cause. Working closing with the president of Women’s Volleyball, she engaged every member of the team in Giving Day and asked them to meet individual goals, such as getting a $5 donation from five or more people. She also created her own Giving Day challenges that rewarded the team with cash or gift cards if they met certain milestones.

“There were incentives to make it more exciting,” she explains.

In tandem, Garcia reached out to everyone in her network she could think of—including work colleagues, old friends from college, family members, and members of the Young Alumni Council—and made a personal plea to support Women’s Volleyball. She also created unofficial challenges for other advocates.

“I said to everyone on the Young Alumni Council, ‘If anyone beats me as an advocate, I’ll donate $500 to your cause of choice,’” she says. “I also told anyone that I would support their cause, dollar-for-dollar, if they supported mine.”

On Giving Day, Garcia made posts on Instagram and Facebook to broadcast her efforts to raise money for the Women’s Volleyball team and encourage other people to join her. She also created a group chat for the team so they could keep each other updated throughout the day.

“When we’d hit milestones, we’d blow up the group chat,” she says.

A cause worth fighting for

When Garcia decided to become a Giving Day advocate, choosing Women’s Volleyball as her cause was a no-brainer. As a student, she played on the team for four years. “It was a cornerstone of my time at BU,” she says.

Garcia also knew from experience the team needed donor support to exist. “I remember how hard it was to pay for things and fundraise,” she recalls. “We paid for our transportation, gas, dues, tournament fees, and flights to nationals—which was always so expensive, because it’s typically on the West Coast.” By advocating for the current team, “I knew I could take some of the fundraising pressure off them,” she says.

Becoming a Giving Day advocate is also something that just felt right, Garcia adds. “It really aligns to a lot of the stuff I care about now in my post-grad life,” she says. “I want to be at the center of my community, staying involved and giving back and donating to causes I care about.”

Your giving matters—especially on BU Giving Day! Sign up to be an advocate or make an early gift to the BU program, initiative, or cause you care about before April 9, 2025.

Thumbnail photo credit: @buwomensvolleyball | Banner photo credit: Boston University Women’s Club Volleyball