Greek News

Congratulations to our chapters who hosted successful events this semester.  Read about their work below!

With the help of the Charlottesville community, the housing division of UVa, and the Greek system, Kappa Kappa Gamma was able to donate over 60 pounds of keys to the Key for Hope Foundation to be recycled. The money that comes from this process will be donated to the Sydney Owens Scholarship Foundation which honors a Kappa UVa graduate who passed away this January.

Alpha Phi hosted its first annual Dads’ Weekend over the weekend of March 24-25, 2012. Dads and daughters enjoyed a Starr Hill Brewery Tour, UVa baseball game, social at The Biltmore and a brunch at the Alpha Phi House.  During the event, a UVa football autographed by Mike London was raffled off, raising over $200 for the Alpha Phi Foundation.

On Saturday, March 24th, Zeta Tau Alpha hosted their annual Run For Life 5k around the UVA Grounds. Even in the rain,they had nearly 940 runners and raised around $20,000 for breast cancer education and awareness. The chapter couldn’t be more proud of all the hard work and effort the sisters put into putting on such an amazing event!

Throughout the Spring semester, Lambda Upsilon Lambda has been working to promote their philanthropy program series, P.A.T.H.E. – Promoting Access To Higher Education.  In an effort to encourage young minority high school students to pursue higher education , the Hermanos (brothers) opened up the doors of their homes and host prospective college students.  So far the chapter has allowed more than 15 students to come to the University and gain first-hand experience about what college can offer.  In the beginning of the semester, and with the assistance of ODOS Program Coordinator Julie Roa, Lambda Upsilon Lambda also began a speaker series that focused on portraying the advantages of higher education to young high school students at Albemarle H.S.  It is intended to encourage those students who are not performing at the best of their abilities, to consider higher education as a more tangible option.    The fraternity also began a DREAM Act awareness campaign.  So far the chapter has raised over $150 in just two weeks, and will be donating all proceeds to a Dream Act supporting fund.

The ladies of the Theta Kappa chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. paved the way for young women by hosting Girl Scout Day on the Grounds of UVa. Young women were invited to spend a day with Theta Kappa, consisting of an academic tour, lunch, and recycling! The event was a success, as all participants enjoyed their time, learned about many opportunities of higher education, contributed service to the community, and bonded with the thoroughly kaptivating women of Theta Kappa.

This fall, Delta Sigma Theta and Lambda Theta Alpha joined the American Heart Association Go RED For Women initiative. The chapters encouraged students to wear Red on Feb 3rd, National Wear Red Day, and held a forum with the UVA Club Red clinic to discuss heart disease and how to live a healthy lifestyle. The organization is currently selling empoweRED pins to raise money for the American Heart Association.

Delta Delta Delta hosted a St. Jude patient’s family on Saturday, March 24th for a Bodo’s Breakfast.  The women of the chapter heard all about their experience at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (TriDelta’s National Philanthropy) and about how their teenage son is doing today – cancer free!  Throughout the weekend  members also participated in Reflections, a fantastic body image program.  Special thanks to the UVa TriDelta women who planned and facilitated the events!

Delta Upsilon‘s annual House of Blues program was a big success this year!  The chapter is hoping to send in almost $3,000 to the Wounded Warrior Project, and given that the amount raised last year was about $1,200, DU is REALLY excited about the growth of this new tradition!

Members of FIJI did a wonderful job of volunteering at the Charlottesville Fire Department on Saturday, March 31.  In 4 hours they completed a full overhaul of the exterior of the station, they washed and waxed several fire trucks, they did a deep clean of department’s the gym, they painted an office and they assisted in preparing a big cookout for everyone to enjoy together.  All in all it was a very successful day and members of the fire deparement were impressed by the professionalism, kindness and sincere commitment to service they displayed.

Feel free to check out these upcoming events, hosted by your fellow fraternity and sorority chapters throughout the month of April!

Gamma Phi Beta Sorority will be collecting Box Tops for Education throughout the month of April to benefit students of Burley Middle School who attend the Southwood Boys and Girls Club, one of Gamma Phi Beta’s local philanthropies. Boxes will be located at O’Hill by Crossroads, Newcomb SAV, and C3 in Lambeth, RA’s rooms, and all sororities and fraternities. Please contact Philanthropy Co-Chairwomen of Gamma Phi Beta Sorority, Caleigh Azumaya and Meredith Lee, at 484-802-6552 or via e-mail with any questions.

Alpha Tau Omega and Sigma Delta Tau are partnering together to help out the Charlottesville-Albemarle Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals by putting on the Taus for Paws Spring Carnival, featuring a puppy petting zoo with live music, carnival games, and food from Buttz BBQ.  The event will be held Friday April 13 in Mad Bowl from 2-5PM.  Tickets are $2 and can be purchased from any ATO brother, SDT sister, or at the event itself.

Come enjoy delicious chili and live music (featuring High Top Fade) at the 20^th annual Pi Kappa Phi Chili Cook-off on Friday, April 13th in the KA/Phi Delt Parking Lot from 12-6 PM. Prizes will be awarded for hottest, most creative, best sorority, and best overall chilis.  All proceeds will benefit their national philanthropy, PUSH America, in support of people with disabilities.  Contact Andrew Dailey (amd7dw@virginia.edu)  for information on submitting a pot of chili or if you would like to make a donation.  Entry donations will be a minimum of $5, cups $2, T-shirts $10, and if you buy both a shirt and ticket you will receive a cup for free.

Phi Society will be holding its fifth annual Fish Fry event Friday, April 13th in support of the Boys and Girls Club of Charlottesville. The event will take place from noon to 5pm at the Phi Society fraternity house and will feature live music from SouthPaw and all-you-can-eat fried fish and Cane’s chicken. Entrance fee is $5 or free with the purchase of a Fish Fry t-shirt.  If you have any questions about the event please contact Philanthropy Chair Andy Esposito at aje3zc@virginia.edu.

On Saturday April 14th at 10:30 am, Kappa Alpha Theta will hold their first annual 5k Run for Yeards through UVA grounds. The race will begin and end at Nameless field and will be followed by a post-race reception with live music, food, and One Love apparel for sale. This is the first of what we expect to be many races in memory of our friend and Theta sister Yeardley Love ’10. Our hope is to come together as a community and honor her life and the wonderful ways in which she touched everyone around her. Registration and donations are available online at www.runforyeards.com. Please contact Chloe Lyons (cel2c@virginia.edu) or Sydney Collie (smc2pg@virginia.edu) for more information.

Phi Sigma Kappa will be hosting the first annual ‘Phi Sig Shindig’ philanthropy event, an all day concert benefitting Habitat for Humanity.  The concert will be at the Phi Sigma Kappa house, 1702 Gordon Avenue, on Saturday, April 14th from 12pm to 1am. 10 local bands will be showcased and food and drinks will be available at the event; $5 admission with a wristband on the lawn the week of and $7 at the door. Please contact Dallas Ducar (dmd2ef@virginia.edu) for more information.

Chi Omega’s Golf on Grounds benefitting the Make-A-Wish Foundation will take place on April 14th from 9 am to 4 pm (registration in front of Minor). Welcome in the spring weather by playing golf on a course that takes you through the amphitheater, the gardens, and the Lawn. Golf on Grounds won UVA Greek Awards’ Best Philanthropy in 2011, and is sure to continue to be a UVA favorite this year!  $12 admission (includes tshirt, food, fun, live band, etc) and $1 raffle tickets for awesome prizes (giftcards, jewelry, and more!).  For more information, please contact Ashlyn McCurley (aem5ec@virginia.edu) and Eleanor Katz (emk3fe@virginia.edu).

Beta Theta Pi and Kappa Kappa Gamma will host the 4th annual Tug for the Town tug of war tournament on April 15^th in Mad Bowl from 2:00-5:00. There will be opportunities to sign up online beginning in April. The money will be going to benefit the Charlottesville Free Clinic and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation!

Sigma Kappa will be holding their annual Hoos in Sync lipsyncing competition on Saturday April 21st from 1 pm-4 pm at the Backyard. Best choreographed lipsync will receive a prize! Tickets will be $5 in advance and $6 at the door. It is $20 to register a group of 8-10 to participate. All groups of people are welcome! The Backyard will be offering food and drinks. If you are interested in getting tickets or registering a group you can either find us tabling on the lawn the week before Hoos in Sync, or contact Nicole Habel at ndh5yb@virginia.edu.

On April 21st, Delta Gamma will be hosting  Anchorslam at the Dell basketball courts from 1pm-6pm. Sign up a team to compete and win prizes, or just come by to watch! T-shirts and jerseys will be sold before and at the event. There will also be a raffle held for gift cards to restaurants on the corner!   For more information, contact Millie Mellencamp at mmm5cb@virginia.edu.

Alpha Phi and Fiji present the second annual APhield Day on Saturday, April 21st from 11-4 in Mad Bowl!  They’ll be bringing the glory days of elementary school to UVA: inflatable obstacle course, relay races, and pie-eating contests are just a few of the day’s many events. Teams of 8 at $80/team will compete in the male or female bracket to be named APhield Day champion and win the grand prize! Email Jonni Seal at jks5ef@virginia.edu for more information!

Sigma Nu will be hosting its 21st annual XANADU philanthropy concert on the 21st of April.  The event will feature a series of live bands throughout the afternoon outside the Sigma Nu house (189 Culbreth Rd.), and all proceeds will go to the Patients & Friends Research Fund for Breast Cancer Research.  If you would like more information, please reach out to Tommy Hanson at teh2dh@virginia.edu.

Does your chapter have a point of pride that you want to share with the community?  FSL wants to hear about them! Send us a brief overview of what your chapter is proud of to Alex Carroll (aec5d@virginia.edu), and we’ll include it in the final 2011-2012 edition of the Greek News next month.