'Lip Sync with Our Stars' raises money for Center for the Homeless, ABC57 anchors take center stage

 

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Michael Myers, the Backstreet Boys, and Barbie all dancing on the same stage? 

The community came together through song to raise money for the Center for the Homeless, at its sixth annual ‘Lip Sync with our Stars’.

“We’re having a lot of fun, there’s no question about it; Halloween theme, people are coming in costume, but at the heart of it all is a very serious message. We’re trying to break the cycle of homelessness for the people that live at the Center for the Homeless,” says Executive Director for the Center for the Homeless, Steve Camilleri.

The audience voted for their favorite spooky performance with each vote costing $35.

All proceeds go to the Center for the Homeless, funding after school programming for children at the center.

“We just want to be there for the people in our community who have fallen on hard times, have really just had a rough experience, they’re in a rough patch in their life, and we want them to feel safe,” Camilleri says.

Emerging from the Barbie box and taking center stage under the name ‘They’re Jens . . . He’s just Ken’ was ABC57's own Brian Conybeare, Jennifer Copeland, and Jena Stopczynski.

The routine they’ve worked on for weeks, earning them almost 80 votes. 

“We nailed everything,” says Stopczynski. “It was amazing.” 

More than getting a chance to play Barbie and Ken for the night, Brian's dream come true, is the great cause the three say makes the practice and potential embarrassment worth it.  

“It’s a no brainer,” says Copeland. “I mean, we did this because we wanted to be able to help, have a little fun, raise some money for a good cause, and we accomplished it, you know.” 

And as for next year... Ken tells us we’ll have to wait and see! 

“We will see,” Conybeare says. “If they’ll have us back, we may be back!”

Voting has since closed, but it’s never too late to donate to the Center for the Homeless as they gear closer towards housing people for weather amnesty. You can go on their website to see how to donate.