Today, the William Paterson Pionettes set up outside Pioneer Hall for their first self-hosted fundraiser, offering $10 car washes and $2 brownies from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The event is tied to a cost the university doesn’t cover: the club’s uniforms. Because SGA club funding can’t be used for apparel, members of the club have carried the weight themselves.

“We’ve been using our own pockets for our uniforms,” costing members $30 a player, said Kalaya Horne, president of the Pionettes.

Horne, 22, is a social work major and the club’s only graduating senior this year. She has been a Pionette since the group was founded in Spring 2022 and has watched the Pionettes “grow, crumble, and watched it grow again.”

“The Pionettes is a majorette club. We do performances on campus. We’re all about sisterhood and community, really building up confidence in young women, especially young people of color,” said Horne.

The club will mark its fourth anniversary this spring. It has been a staple at campus events, performing a variety of styles, primarily focusing on hip-hop, jazz, and high-energy dance routines for athletic events and pep rallies.

“This is our first event like this. We usually go to others’ events and perform, so basketball games, football games, we’ve done Milk and Melanin, Greek yard shows, everything of that sort,” said Horne.

By early afternoon, members had already washed 10 cars, as others held signs to attract drivers and students passing at the top and bottom of the hill of the entrance to Pioneer and Heritage Hall.

As of right now, the club is working to be recognized as a club sport to reclassify and qualify them for school funding.