The Observer, April 18, 2008
Volume XL, Issue 25
Greek service events offer panoply of philanthropy
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Do you like to eat burritos? How about running around a track, playing softball, throwing dodgeballs, testing your trivia knowledge, or walking to John Carroll and back? If you're a Case student and and have not found a philanthropy event to tickle your fancy this week, you may want to check your pulse. All of the Greek service events this week provided diverse choices for all who enjoy raising money for a good cause.
Phi Kappa Psi's 24-hour softball tournament, starting at noon tomorrow, has a rich history stemming from a similar program in the 1970s. Restarted 11 years ago, the most recent incarnation has raised over $4000 for the Cystic Fibrosis Rainbow Chapter in the past three years.
The games will go until all the teams have played through either the competitive or non-competitive bracket. As of Tuesday, 15-16 hours were accounted for, with procrastinators from the week before occupying the final spots.
Food, music, and prizes are promised to keep those not in a game occupied. Teams that cannot field a full team are supplemented by Phi Kappa Psi brothers on standby.
"It takes a lot of planning; late scheduling and weather issues can make it difficult. Coordinating sponsorships and efforts to publicize is the main obstacle for running an event like this," said chairman Dan Dennhardt.
Another event with a rich history is Beta Theta Pi's annual Walkathon for Diabetes, taking place tomorrow at 11 a.m. Started in 1986 in the memory of deceased brother Steven P. Arnold, who died of complications from diabetes, proceeds benefit the Diabetes Association of Greater Cleveland.
Participants, traditionally only brothers, usually walked to the Squire Valleevue Farm and back. This year the field is extended to the community, and the walk is to John Carroll U. and back. A new chapter recently opened at JCU will hopefully cooperate in the future.
Each of the past two years, Walkathon has generated over $2000, mainly through corporate donations.
With 10 participants who are not brothers eventually the event will include just as many participants as brothers. Participants end the trek (a three-hour walk at a brisk pace) with a meal at Case that includes appearances by a representative from the organization and Arnold's father.
"It's hard to find a niche anymore; there are already outdoor philanthropy events, all of which are great causes. The market [for donations and participation] seems to be tapped," said Christopher Coy, a Beta Theta Pi philanthropy chair.
Another event benefiting diabetes research, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation specifically, is Beat the Dekes. Held on April 11 in Nord, the event consisted of teams of participants competing against Delta Kappa Epsilon brothers in trivia.
Normally DKE hosts a Miss Case mock beauty pageant every spring, but it was deemed too narrow an event, catering only to sororities. The trivia idea was Eric Neuman's, philanthropy chair at the fraternity.
Writing a program and coming up with 400 to 500 questions to ask were the least of the fraternity's worries. Raising the money was more difficult than usual.
"We didn't have a lot of luck this semester in that respect; I feel it was the result of holding the event later in the semester and companies being picked clean of donations, so to speak," said Neuman.
Next year to alleviate some of the problems involved in the first year, DKE hopes to move the event to earlier in the semester to make it easier to solicit donations.
As always, for the Case students who like to dodge, dip, duck, dive, and dodge, FIJI's Dodgeball tournament is the ticket. Benefiting the American Red Cross, FIJI was able to donate over $600 April 13 in Adelbert Gym.
Sixteen teams, including Greek organizations, department teams, and residence halls, participated in the event, with over $750 worth of food and gift certificates donated.
The Red Cross is FIJI's international companion with philanthropy events. The Akron chapter actually hosted a similar tournament the same day on their campus.
"I'm happy with the turnout. Next year will be even bigger. It was FIJI's first philanthropy event since being on campus and I saw it as a sort of 'get to know the brothers.' With the experience we learned this year we hope to expand and include a fall event as well," said service committee member Ryan Shoup.
Adelbert Gym not doing it for you? Runners of all stripes ran the grueling Zeta Psi Qdoba Relays, held April 12 to benefit Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital on the NRV track.
Teams participated in either the running challenge or the fundraising competition. A running team consisted of four participants that each ran a lap, ate a Qdoba burrito, and then ran another lap as quickly as possible. A team from Sigma Phi Epsilon won the race for the second year in a row with a time of under 20 minutes. An Alpha Chi Omega team won the fundraising challenge.
Started five years ago as the Chipotle Relays, Zeta Psi brought back the relays last year with Qdoba as sponsor. With an extraordinary haul of $4000 a year ago, this year proved less successful with less than $2000 raised, though the exact amount is still being determined.
