Delta Gamma reaches out to the community

The past couple weeks have been full of events and adventures for Delta Gamma. Beyond having our second date party, beginning preparation to be a part of not one but two philanthropies and participating in multiple sisterhood events, this month Delta Gamma has put an even larger emphasis on community outreach in the form of community service.

For the past couple years, Delta Gamma has grown a strong bond with a local Christiansburg woman, Louise. Louise is permanently blind and as our chapter’s philanthropic cause is to help fight off the struggles of being blind through Service for Sight we found it only appropriate to get to know Louise. As the years have passed, Louise has become an honorary Delta Gamma of the Delta Rho chapter and every day of the week a couple girls from our chapter walk with her to get her some exercise and keep her company. This week, Louise went into surgery and all of our chapter women have been keeping her in our hearts and minds and once she is out of surgery she will be consistently in the company of Delta Gamma ladies.

This week the chapter also celebrated Halloween with the town of Blacksburg. A large portion of the chapter participated in the annual Oak Lane Trick or Treat festivities to incorporate the community surrounding Virginia Tech. Also, the chapter participated in a trunk or treat festivity outside a local church to give back to the families that support Virginia Tech, as well as the chapter of Delta Gamma.

Kappa Kappa Gamma: Old and New

Kappa celebrated our annual Alumni Reunion in conjunction with Homecoming this past weekend. Kappas past, present and even future gathered at the house for a day of food, games, fun and endless reunions. It was great to see the Kappa women come back who had graduated to see where they are in their lives right now, as well as see some with cute little future Kappas! (Sarah, class of 2013, and a Kappa alumna's daughter - a little Kappa in the making!)

The alumni loved to meet the active sisters and see how the chapter has changed over the years. Everyone gathered to see scrapbooks from years before to see how the outfits, house and sisters have all changed and improved over the years. After the reunion at the house, sisters gathered with the alumni to head to the game to see Tech beat Boston College and enjoy time together before the game. Many sisters were able to meet girls in their "key chain families" from long before, and everyone enjoyed the time together.

Along with the alumni reunion, the Kappa house also got a facelift this past week! Our great room now has all new furniture and makes our house feel even more like home. With the Kappa house feeling like a new home and fall right around the corner, we are excited to see where the rest of the season leads us!

Sister Spotlight: Pi Beta Phi's 2012 Executive Council

It was an exciting day for Pi Beta Phi's Virginia Zeta chapter at Virginia Tech when we elected our new 2012 Executive Council! The new executive council is made up of excellent women from many of the different pledge classes. The chapter was bursting with excitement over the new members of the executive council; it was the first chance that members from the Spring ’11 pledge class had to apply for a position in the chapter. We can’t wait to see what our new exec will do to make our chapter even better! It’s exciting to see the ideas have started to come up about making our philanthropy the best it can be to support literacy.

Our new executive council features some very fresh faces, as a lot of exec for 2012 is made up of sophomores who have really stepped it up to help better our chapter! The Pi Beta Phi Executive Council will be lead by the newly elected President, sophomore, Jamie Cabaleiro, in the 2012 year. The whole chapter can’t wait to see all that Jamie has to offer. Jamie served as president of Junior Panhellenic and has greatly shown how dedicated she is to Pi Beta Phi, our philanthropy, Virginia Tech, and the Greek community as a whole.

Jamie Cabaleiro, 2012 President of Pi Beta Phi - VA Zeta

Congratulations to the newly elected 2012 Executive Council of the Virginia Zeta chapter of Pi Beta Phi!

ADPi Loves Halloween!

Alpha Delta Pi loved participating in Oak Lane Trick or Treat on October 29^th!

It was very cold and rainy, and everyone worried only a few families would come to the event. But even with the bad "Bleaksburg" weather, over 200 Blacksburg children and their families came to Oak Lane to Trick or Treat to play games and craft with the chapters in Oak Lane!

Weeks ago flyers were handed out at local elementary and middle schools to gauge about how many children and their families would be interested in coming to this annual event filled with candy, crafts, coloring and finger painting.

ADPi was given the craft of paper lanterns. Elementary and Middle schoolers came by the house (which was decorated with orange and purple lights, spider webs and pumpkins) to grab handfuls of candy and cut out and decorate their own lanterns.

ADPi sisters who were dressed up as bumblebees, M&M’s and cowgirls, helped chaperone families around Oak Lane and also helped children with their crafting.

“This was a nice way to give back to the Blacksburg community in a positive, fun way. Everyone loves Halloween!” said one sister.

“The girls had tons of fun! It was a great way for Greeks to connect to the local Blacksburg community,” said APDi philanthropy chair, Annicole Buranych. 

We’ve been enjoying the leftover candy ever since! 

Last Week: Sisters enjoyed taking fun chapter pictures on the pylons! It's always fun to get everyone together for some laughs and goofy pictures!

Two Sisters Pose for a Roommate Shot

ZTA "Tackles" Fiji Diamond Bowl

This past week the sisters of Zeta Tau Alpha teamed up to participate in Fiji's annual Diamond Bowl to support the JimmyV Foundation for cancer research. ZTA has been preparing for weeks for this exciting philanthropy to support such a wonderful cause.  The philanthropic week consisted of various events around campus and "tackling" of Fiji men to earn points.  Monday night was the Coach's Auction at Awful Arthur's in Blacksburg.  Everybody came out to the Auction for some good laughs and to kick off a great week. Wednesday through Friday we collected as much money as possible to donate at the booths.  Throughout the week the brothers of Fiji were consistently "tackled" by all of the organizations participating to prepare for the big football tournament on Sunday.  We all teamed up to find Fiji brothers in classrooms, dining halls, and walking around campus to get as many tackles as possible! To finish off the week, there is nothing like fall weather and Sunday football to raise money and support for cancer research.  The games were played at the fields behind a local apartment complex in the heart of Blacksburg and all of the Fiji men and other organizations lined the field to watch a full day of competitive flag football. A total of four games and eight organizations participated.  I think it is safe to say ZTA made Hokie football proud! After a great week and hard work put in by all of us and two great wins on the football field, the sisters of Zeta Tau Alpha really “Tackled” Fiji Diamond Bowl this year!

Alpha Chi Omega goes all out for FIJI Diamond Bowl!

This past week the sisters of Alpha Chi Omega participated in Diamond Bowl! Their philanthropy supports the Jimmy V Foundation. The Jimmy V Foundation is dedicated to saving lives by helping find a cure for cancer in memory of North Carolina State University Basketball Coach, Jim Valvano. FIJI raises so much money each year and we always have so much fun participating, so it wasn’t even a debate when we decided to participate again this year!

The week’s events included a brotherhood auction, two hand touching and tackling brothers on campus, and ended on Sunday with a flag football tournament. FIJI Diamond Bowl is held a few weeks before FIJI’s main philanthropic event called The FIJI Run Across Virginia. This event is a cross-state run culminating in the presentation of the UVA vs. Virginia Tech game ball at the annual game in late November. Both the UVA and Virginia Tech chapters participate and it is always a great success. They hold Diamond Bowl in advance to raise additional awareness and support for their amazing cause.

We all had so much fun chasing around the brothers on campus, and the brotherhood auctions are always very entertaining. The sisters of Alpha Chi love getting down and dirty to play football for a great cause, and had so much fun playing against the other sororities that participated.

Upcoming this week the sisters of Alpha Chi Omega are preparing for our fall philanthropy Mock Rock. This week we will be collecting shelter items at the local Kroger stores for the Women’s Resource Center of the New River Valley. 

Alpha Chi getting ready to start a game of flag football!

Alpha Phi does Halloween

The sisters of Alpha Phi have been celebrating Halloween in a few festive ways this week. On Friday, October 28^th we kicked off our Halloween weekend with Oak Lane Trick-Or-Treat. Despite the freezing rain and gloomy weather, many families and children still came out to trick-or-treat around Oak Lane. Nothing can keep kids from their candy when it comes to Halloween!

At the Alpha Phi house, we passed out candy and had a craft inside where we got to interact with the kids. We made lollipop ghosts while listening to Halloween music in the Great Room. We loved getting to see all of the Halloween costumes as the kids and families came to visit the house!

Passing out candy outside the house

Helping the kids make lollipop ghosts

Tomorrow, Monday, October 31^st, Alpha Phi will be on the Drillfield and in the Library Plaza from 10-2 handing out candy and wishing everyone a Happy Halloween. Make sure you stop by to see us (or scare us) throughout the day and get your free candy!

Happy Halloween everyone!

From the sisters of Alpha Phi 

Sister Spotlight: Nicole Adam

Our Vice President of Public Relations, Nicole Adam is our sister spotlight! Within Tri Delta, Nicole worked so hard campaigning during Homecoming Week- she organized our booths and was there whenever our candidate needed her support. Amongst all of the Homecoming-palooza, Nicole also managed to put together a phenomenal PR package! T-shirts, hoodies and hats galore! She is an inspiring sister, leader and person. Today we are also recognizing her for her Relay for Life efforts- she is an executive member this year and has done a tireless job bringing cancer awareness to VT and getting the campus excited for the Relay for Life event on April 20th, 2011 (go to vtrelay.org for more information). To show her dedication, along with convincing multiple girls in our chapter, Nicole dyed a strip of her hair hot pink in honor of breast cancer awareness month.


We are proud of you Nicole!

Alpha Chi Goes All Out for Homecoming 2011

It is that time of year again! Each fall Alpha Chi Omega looks forward to participating in Virginia Tech’s Homecoming week, and especially love this years theme: 85 Years of Timeless Traditions at Virginia Tech.  As sisters, we take even more time during Homecoming week to hang out and remember all the great times we’ve had together here at Virginia Tech. Who doesn’t love hanging out on campus with the beautiful weather and even more gorgeous maroon and orange leaves everywhere. We are fortunate enough this year to have a Homecoming Candidate, and we love hanging out on campus campaigning for her and getting to know other students and faculty.

Homecoming is not only a time to attend football games, parades, and spirit rallies, but also to reflect on Virginia Tech’s history, students, and faculty that make it such special place in each one of our hearts. Within the Greek Community, Homecoming Week is a great way for chapters to come together and celebrate being Greek and getting to know each other better by attending speakers and other planned activities. We all have such a special bond being Greek and this week is a great way to come together as a smaller community within Virginia Tech’s student body to show everyone how great it is! Alpha Chi Omega is looking so forward to getting to know our paired organizations better and wish our candidate, and all the other Greek candidates, the best of luck!

We hope everyone has a happy homecoming week! Go Hokies!

Kappa Kappa HOMECOMING!

Happy Homecoming season Hokies! With fall comes football games, crisp air and one of Virginia Tech’s most timeless traditions – homecoming. This year is the 85^th anniversary of Virginia Tech’s homecoming and there are some very exciting events going on this coming week. Not only is Homecoming very important in the Greek community, it is special to several Panhellenic chapters who have representatives on court this year.

Kappa is lucky to have an amazing candidate on court this year and we wish her the best of luck! Homecoming is a time for Greek organizations to come together to participate in the weeks’ events as well as to get to know each other on a more personal level. Organizations are paired together and encouraged to attend speakers and activities throughout the week with their pairings – Kappa cannot wait to spend more time with our two paired organizations this week.

Besides the excitement of Homecoming, we just finished our fall philanthropy, Kaddyshack, and had an overwhelming number of organizations come out and participate in the events that we had at the house. This was the first year that Kappa decided to do a “golf tournament” around Oak Lane (I feel that the term “Oak Lane Open” may be coined for years to come) – people loved the event. Some teams even played the course several times it was that much fun! All the proceeds and books that we received were sent to our national philanthropy, Reading is Fundamental. Now that Kaddyshack has finished, we can look forward to participating in a great number of Greek philanthropies in the upcoming months.

Kappa is excited to keep up the great work throughout the rest of the semester and ready to give it our all this week for Homecoming!

Gamma Phi Beta is Crazy for Recruitment

October 14-16 was a Recruitment filled weekend for Gamma Phi Beta. Two of our favorite CLC’s, collegiate leadership consultants, Rachael and Anna flew in from International Headquarters to spend time with us discussing our roll in recruitment this year and what all to expect in the Spring. Gamma Phi Beta is a new sorority here on campus and this will technically be our first year going through formal recruitment and we want to make sure it goes off without a hitch! Everyone is so excited to be a part of this community and this process in general. On Saturday, October 15, all 150 members came together for a 4 hour workshop to discuss the importance of recruitment in general and to become aware of the rules and role Gamma Phi Beta and each member will play. There were many events during this workshop, all of which brought each and every sister that much closer together. Our sisterhood truly has skyrocketed since this workshop! Gamma Phi Beta has had a busy, busy semester and it was good to reconnect and re-focus on the upcoming semester, which is just a few weeks away, and what makes us who we are as a sorority! To finish off the weekend, Gamma Phi Beta took a trip to Sinkland Farms for a group pumpkin patch trip followed by a pumpkin carving contest at the house. The weekend couldn’t have gone better and led to a great start this week for Homecoming!

Members of Gamma Phi Beta: Eta Epsilon at Sinkland Farms

Chi Omega helps out at the Special Olympics Halloween Dance

Happy October from Chi Omega Sigma Lambda!! We are so excited for this month filled of fun events! Many of our lovely sisters kicked off this month by volunteering at the in the Special Olympics Halloween Dance. This event was held at Christiansburg Parks & Recreation Department, located on Franklin Street in Christiansburg. This dance was such a fun event and got all of our sisters excited for wonderful holiday of Halloween (which is only a couple weeks away!!). This event is just a great way in which we as part of the Virginia Tech community can go and meet people within our community. Since it was the Halloween Dance, everyone in attendance dressed up in costumes. One of our sister’s said, “I got some great ideas from some of the people I met for my real Halloween costume. Not only did they dress up great, they told me about 100 great ideas.”   There was tons of great food and drinks, all Halloween related of course! One of the best parts about the whole night was the music and dancing. Everyone was getting wild and crazy on the dance floor and there was even a contest for the best dancer! This was a night that our sister’s won’t ever forget!  Chi Omega has recently started participating in community service as a sisterhood through the YMCA, such as senior connections. We will keep you bloggers updated on all the exciting events we as a chapter do with that as well! See you in the next few weeks!!

Keep Calm and Fight On

The sisters of Zeta Tau Alpha have successfully completed the annual “Think Pink” week to support Breast Cancer Awareness and Education. Starting at 10 am Monday through Wednesday, the women of ZTA took their places at booths located around campus to start passing out ribbons, information cards, and collecting donations to support such a great cause.  The booths were open until 4 each day and a total of 20,000 ribbons were passed out throughout the week.  Ribbons can be seen pinned to shirts and backpacks campus wide. Every Hokie needs a little pink to go with that maroon and orange!

 In addition to the booths around campus, this past Thursday night was the Breast Cancer Awareness and Education pancake dinner.  A little rain and some cold weather didn’t stop these women from selling pancakes outside of DX and Squires from 10 at night until 2 in the morning.  A total of 2,000 pancakes were sold and a total of $1,800 was raised throughout the week. 

It does not stop there.  This coming weekend, the Virginia Tech Hokies take on Boston College.  Not only is it the Homecoming game, this weekend will be the annual “Think Pink” football game.  Zeta Tau Alpha has another 30,000 ribbons to distribute and will also be selling “Think Pink” wristbands for $1.00 at the game.  What does ZTA have to say about the game this weekend? “Keep Calm and Fight on” Hokies to support breast cancer awareness and education! 

Be sure to cheer on the Hokies and get your ribbons and wristbands this weekend!

Alpha Delta Pi Goes To The Cascades!

3 ADPi's at the base of The Cascades!

This Sunday, October 16, a group of ADPi sisters met at the sorority house in Oak Lane for a unique sisterhood event. The girls hiked the Cascades, but they didn’t do it alone--- they were joined by 25 ADPi sisters from Longwood University.

Virginia Tech’s ADPi Social Enrichment Chair, Mina Choi, and Longwood’s Social Enrichment Chair organized the hike and the lunch that followed.

“I loved it! I’ve never been to the cascades before and it was GORGEOUS today,” said Katie Czerwonka (Czer), a junior.

“It was fun to get to know the Longwood girls!! Everyone had lots of fun,” said Czer.  

The sisters from both chapters enjoyed the hike and getting to know each other on the quick afternoon trip.

"I definitely enjoyed the hike itself because we were walking and talking. Even though we go to different schools and there are a lot of differences, we shared so many commonalities. It wasn’t awkward at all, even though we just met. We’re all sisters and share the same bond,” said Kelly Luker, a sophomore.

After the hike, sisters came back to the ADPi house in Oak Lane and enjoyed Sub Station lunch (yum!).

“We could not have been more lucky with the weather! The sun was out, there was a nice breeze, the leaves we changing… it was beautiful,” said Czer.

We look forward to more sisterhood events in the future, not just within our own chapter, but with others like Longwood University!

Side note-- SAFARI HUNT UPDATE : We still don’t have the final numbers in but we know we raised over $5,000 for Ronald McDonald House and over 300,000 can tabs (75 pounds of which pay for a family to stay in the Ronald McDonald House for one night free of charge). With the amount we raised, a family will be able to stay in the house for 5 nights while their child is in the hospital. We're so excited and hope to do even better next year!

Kappa Delta does Pumpkin Patch!

It couldn't have been a more beautiful day for a trip to the Pumpkin Patch!  The perfect sunny fall weather made for an exciting hay ride and great pictures!  


Kappa Delta girls met at the house at 3pm on Sunday, October 16th and caravaned to the nearby patch for a day full of fun and sisterhood bonding.  Once we arrived at the patch, sister Monica Borza, arranged a hayride to take us down to pick out our pumpkins.  All of us piled into the back of the hay-covered wagon and had the giant John Deere cart us away.  We couldn't have had more fun running around snapping pictures and picking up the cute little pumpkins.  Girls really enjoyed the abundance of pumpkin vines that seemed to stretch for endless acres.  

Once the pumpkins were picked, we got to watch a few people sling pumpkins in a giant sling-shot as far as they could get it to go.  That was quite an entertainment.  Overall it was such a cute little experience, from the quaint little ice cream and gift shop, to the miniature horses parading around.  We all enjoyed spending the valuable time with our sisters and can't wait to do it again next year.  It's these little traditions that make sisterhood so great.  (:

Sister Spotlight: Annie Hazelgrove

“You can always laugh at yourself, there are always opportunities to “do good” and never take life, or myself too seriously,” says Annie Hazelgrove when asked what the three most valuable lessons of being a sister of Delta Gamma has taught her.

This month, Delta Gamma voted on Annie Hazelgrove as a deserving recipient of the Sister Spotlight. The ladies of Delta Gamma felt that Annie best represented what the chapter stood for and are all proud of her for her high level of participation and involvement in Delta Gamma events, may it be a walk with Louise on a Monday afternoon or planning our first date party of the year.

Annie is the director of internal socials and has already planned two very successful events – our chapter’s first date party as well as parents day weekend. Although she is required to plan these events as the internal social chair, Annie “loves having the ability to plan these events because they play an important role in our experiences as DG members”.

Although she is involved in Delta Gamma and all other Oak Lane philanthropic events, as well as Oak Lane’s community council to Annie being involved with Delta Gamma does not necessarily mean holding a position within the chapter or going to philanthropies – it means being involved in the lives of her sisters. “It’s the being there to pick up a sister when she falls in front of everybody at roller derby. It’s driving to Christiansburg to get Coldstone when a sister has a bad day,” says Hazelgrove.

Her dedication and loyalty to each member of Delta Gamma is what puts Annie Hazelgrove in the sister spotlight. Annie is a lady of Oak Lane that all of her sisters can trust, rely on and know to be there through thick and thin.

Sigma Kappa is Walking!

The sisters of Sigma Kappa are walking...for cures!  On September 10^th and September 25^th, 2011 sisters walked to cure Alzheimer’s disease and Diabetes.

Every year the Epsilon Chi chapter of Sigma Kappa goes to Roanoke for Memory Walk.  Memory Walk raises money for Alzheimer’s disease research and also raises awareness of the disease and how many families it affects worldwide. There are over 5.1 million Americans that have Alzheimer’s disease, and it is a cause that many people have witnessed through their own family members and friends.  The women joined with hundreds of Roanoke and New River Valley residents to walk through downtown Roanoke and raise funds to research this disease.

Sisters of Sigma Kappa at Memory Walk in Roanoke, VA.

The best thing about being in a sorority is having sisters who are always there for you!  On September 25, 2011 the Sisters of Sigma Kappa Sorority joined with their sister Jamie to support her at the 2011 Walk to Cure Diabetes in Roanoke.  The walk is sponsored by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund and raises money for Type I Diabetes research.  The sisters had a wonderful time in Roanoke and were so happy to go support Jamie!

Sisters of Sigma Kappa with Jamie and her family at the 2011 Walk to Cure Diabetes.

Tri Delta's Outrageous October

I’ve dubbed this month our Outrageously Outstanding (slightly Overprogrammed) October! But we wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

Our philanthropy chair and our assistant philanthropy chair Mary Frances Dudley worked so incredibly hard planning this year’s Flapjacks and Football. They both have an unmatched intrinsic motivation and passion to support St. Jude patients and we could not have raised so much money without them. Delta love you girls!

At squires and outside of TOTS on a rainy Tuesday, teams came out hard with friendly faces and empty stomachs. We raised significantly more than in previous years! New this year was the pancake-eating contest which was intense and made for some healthy competition for a good cause. Saturday’s College Game Day was a huge success, and our chapter cheered on the participating teams at Sunday’s flag football tournament. We will know soon the total amount we raised for St. Jude!

Friday the 14^th Gilbert Linkous Elementary students had a pumpkin painting party with their Linkous Ladies and Lads mentors. It’s so rewarding watching these young girls transform into confident, smart, social butterflies!

Deltas flipping yummy flapjacks at our event in Squires!

Alice, Tiffany and Sarah with their Linkous Lady Mariana (cute pumpkin!)

Pi Beta Phi goes on Sisterhood Retreat and Gears Up for Homecoming 2011!

The sisters of Pi Beta Phi went on their annual Sisterhood Retreat this weekend on a river cruise on Smith Mountain Lake. We enjoyed light refreshments and sisterhood bonding as we got to enjoy the beautiful view of the sun reflecting on the lake. It was amazing to spend time with all of my sisters, especially since everyone has been so busy with midterms. It was also great to have everyone together for sisterhood time, as we are gearing up for an exciting Homecoming week! 

Homecoming is a long-standing tradition at Virginia Tech, and Pi Beta Phi sorority is honored to be sponsoring a candidate for homecoming queen! We, as a chapter, are all so excited for homecoming week and are thrilled to have the opportunity to stand beside our sister as she runs for homecoming queen.

We have had a great time preparing for homecoming already – we are working hard as a sorority to make sure that this is the best experience for her! I has already been an adventure trying to hang her banner on Pamplin (but we figured it out!); we all can’t wait to have an amazing homecoming week with all of our sisters and can’t wait to see all of the Virginia Tech alumni, and Virginia Tech Pi Phi alumni back in Blacksburg!

139 Years Strong

On Monday, October 10^th Alpha Phi celebrated Founder’s Day. Alpha Phi was founded at Syracuse University in the fall of 1872 (yes, the same year as the founding of Virginia Tech). To celebrate, we performed the Alpha Phi Promise Ceremony at the end of Chapter. After the ceremony, Exec held a reception for all the sisters to enjoy, cake included! It is so interesting to think back and remember just how Alpha Phi started 139 years ago, with 10 young women who were determined to form a circle of sisterhood.

The Original 10 Sisters of Alpha Phi

In other news, Alpha Phi held a sisterhood-filled weekend this weekend! On Saturday, October 15^th we headed down to Charlotte, North Carolina for a trip to Carowinds Amusement Park for “SCarowinds”, a Halloween-themed evening. This used to be a sisterhood retreat that our chapter did every year, so we brought it back this year. It was a great time filled with screams, costumes, and other fall festivities. 

Alpha Phi at Scarowinds

On Sunday, a large group of Alpha Phis made a trip to Washington D.C. for the Walk to Defeat ALS. Every year we go to this walk to support Jessica Fuller, a Virginia Tech Alpha Phi Alumni, and her father who has been suffering from Lou Gehrig's Disease for many years. To Alpha Phi, this is more than just a few-mile trek, it’s an opportunity to bring hope to ALS patients, to raise money for a cure, and to come together with friends and family to fight for something we care about.

KD Preview for Fall Festival

I can't believe it's already October and we're getting into that winter weather...  I sure miss summer already.  Well, happy October everyone!  With October brings some exciting events in the Greek community!  Tri Delta's Flapjacks and Football Philanthropy is coming up and Kappa Delta is really excited to have to opportunity to participate in such a meaningful event!  We get to eat all the pancakes we want in a pancake eating contest on October 13th, and let's be serious, who doesn't love to eat?!  (:  College Gameday is October 15th at the Tri Delta house for a day full of happy football watching, and finally what everyone is looking forward to most!: the flag football tournament on October 16th!  We'll get to show off athletic skills in the friendly competition and maybe even dress in theme!  

At the end of October, the 29th, Kappa Delta is hosting our third annual Fall Festival!  It's a very exciting event, with food, fun and friends!  So cheesy I know, but really it's such a blast and my favorite event that we do!  There's a cornhole competition which gets pretty heated and serious, a corn eating contest which is absolutely hilarious and pumpkin carving contests!  New this year is our blow up obstacle course, and don't forget to pie a sister in the face!  All of the money goes towards Richmond Children's Hospital.  It's a rewarding experience because we actually get to go to the hospital and see the kids ourselves.  So great!  We are all so excited to see everyone come out for the fun and great cause!

Chi Omega Partners for Largest Ice Cream Social

Chi Omega Sigma Lambda participated in the 10^th Annual World’s Largest Ice Cream Social held on September 27th. All of the proceeds went to Make- A- Wish -Foundation, which is Chi Omega’s national philanthropy. If any readers have not heard of Make- A-Wish- Foundation, its mission is to enrich the lives of children with life- threatening medical conditions through its wish- granting. This ice cream social is a way for this foundation to raise awareness and money for this amazing cause.

Customers would get a free taste of the Sprinkled with Wishes™ Creation™ - Sweet Cream Ice Cream, Brownie, Rainbow Sprinkles and Fudge with a donation. This picture above is the ad that we posted around campus and it shows the yummy ice cream flavor given out. Customers ranged from sisters and brothers in other Greek organizations, friends and family, and fellow Hokies. The ice cream flavor was made by a child’s whose one true wish was to create the exclusive flavor for the “World’s Largest Ice cream Social.” By attending this event and trying this child’s creation, guests will have helps contribute to granting the wishes of many children with serious illness.

The Sigma Lambda chapter has been participating in this event ever since the Coldstone Creamery opened up here in Blacksburg. It is a one day event, and all the Chi Omega’s sisters were around answering any questions the customers may have had about the event. We loved supporting our philanthropy from Blacksburg, and we know that our sister all around the country did the same on this day. The Make-A-Wish-Foundation is a great philanthropy, and when ice cream is involved, who can resist!  Also all month long Cold Stone stores will be accepting donations to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. So if anyone visits any Cold Stone Creamery store, they can show their support for the Make-A-Wish Foundation by purchasing a Make-A-Wish paper star for just a dollar! This is how our sisters like to raise awareness to the community about the Make-A-Wish-Foundation.

Our main philanthropy is held in the spring, but this is one example of how we support the Make-A-Wish Foundation throughout the year. The Chi Omega sisters of Sigma Lambda thank the Greek community for supporting us and the Make-A- Wish- Foundation.

PiPhiestival

Things have been very exciting for the Pi Beta Phi chapter at Virginia Tech recently! We launched our new philanthropy this fall to raise money for literacy. We raise money for Big Brothers Big Sisters of the New River Valley, and First Book, an organization that places a book in the hands of a child in need. Pi Beta Phi’s “PiPhiestival” began on Sunday, September 25^th in the Oak Lane Greek Community at Virginia Tech with a 5v5 basketball tournament, with numerous organizations participating, raffles, and “Pie a Pi Phi”. With “Pi a Pi Phi”, anyone could pay a dollar to pie one of the sisters of Pi Beta Phi in the face with whipped cream; by “”pi-ing” sometone, each fraternity or sorority gets points for their team in order to get closer to winning “PiPhiestival”. We had a great turn out in Oak Lane and there was great sportsmanship among all of the teams participating in the basketball tournament! It was so great to see members of fraternity and sorority chapters coming out to support their representatives in the tournament! We also had so many girls from our chapter getting excited about being pied in the face, including our chapter president, Missy Coates (see picture below).

While our philanthropy is a little different from other chapter’s philanthropies in the sense that ours is typically a one-day event as opposed to a weeklong series of events, we decided to add a new twist this year – a concert! This year, we are proud to be co-sponsoring a benefit concert with the Virginia Tech Union (VTU) in Squires Commonwealth Ballroom; the concert will feature Devin Spear and Fiction 20 Down from the DC/Maryland/Northern Virginia area. Opener, Devin Spear, will be coming to Blacksburg for the show from Washington, D.C. and describes his genre of music as “Relaxica”. The headliner, Fiction 20 Down, from Baltimore, MD has been drawing attention with their reggae/hip-hop sounds, and they will be touring with the band 311 soon. Fiction 20 Down has headlined major events such as Haiti Relief – The Concert, and are therefore definitely familiar with helping others in powerful ways, as Pi Beta Phi aims to do.

We have had a great fall so far because of our philanthropy’s success, as well as getting involved with other fraternity/sorority chapters’ philanthropies! I love that our Greek community has such amazing philanthropic goals and that everyone enjoys getting involved and helping with other chapters’ philanthropies because they know it is the right thing to do.  Everyone has so much fun being together and helping out great causes in the New River Valley area and beyond! I can’t wait to see what all of the Panhellenic and IFC chapters are able to do for their philanthropies and for the community this year! Thanks to everyone who participated in “PiPhiestival”!

Alpha Chi Omega Sister Spotlight: Katie Barham!

This past week a sister of Alpha Chi Omega, Katie Barham, was recognized in the Collegiate Times for her philanthropic endeavors in part with the Virginia Tech Women’s Center’s initiative called S.A.V.E.S. on their fight to end dating and relationship violence.

S.A.V.E.S. stands for Sexual Assault and Violence Education by Students, and is a peer education organization that strives to raise awareness of sexual assault and violence through outreach and education in hopes that through their commitment, we can create a safe and accepting environment throughout the Blacksburg/Virginia Tech community. The members of S.A.V.E.S. have been trained in ways of educating people about intense subjects such as sexual assault, stalking, and relationship violence. Members of S.A.V.E.S. go around to organizations on campus including sororities, fraternities, residence halls, and classrooms to get the word out about these serious issues that are faced on our campus, along with other College campuses all across the country, but people tend look over.

During the month of October, the Red Flag Campaign takes place which is one of the Women’s Center’s main initiatives that deals with relationship violence. This movement’s purpose is to teach the public how to recognize “red flags” in relationships and lasts through out the month of October, which is national Domestic Violence Awareness month. Alpha Chi Omega joins in every October to promote the Red Flag Campaign since our philanthropy is to support victims of domestic violence in the New River Valley.

Katie is very passionate about this issue because she says it “goes so unnoticed on college campuses,” and that’s what motivated her to join S.A.V.E.S.  A domestic violence act occurs every 15 seconds somewhere in the United States, and its so inspiring to her sisters and members of the community that Katie, along with other members of S.A.V.E.S., are taking a stand and educating others about domestic violence on Virginia Tech’s Campus.

If you or a friend is in an abusive relationship, the Women’s Center can provide individual and group counseling, shelter, advocacy, and accompaniment to the hospital or legal proceedings. The center is located at 206 Washington St. (0270). To make an appointment, call (540) 231-7806 (between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday).If the center is closed, and you need immediate support, call the Women’s Resource Center of the NRV’s 24-hour hotline at (540) 639-1123. If you are in immediate danger, call 9-11. 

THINK PINK! with Zeta Tau Alpha

This week will be Zeta Tau Alpha’s annual Think Pink week to support our philanthropy, Breast Cancer Awareness and Education.  The sisters of ZTA have been working very hard over the past few weeks in preparation for this exciting week that coincides with the national October Breast Cancer Awareness and Education month.  There will be booths Monday-Wednesday this week around campus located at Squires, Mcbryde, and West End dining hall.  Be sure to keep an eye out for the girls handing out Think Pink ribbons, information cards for awareness and prevention, as well as donation boxes at the booths.  In addition to the booths around campus, the sisters of ZTA will be having a pancake dinner next week, October 13 from 10-2.  All you can eat pancakes will be served outside of DX and Squires for only five dollars.  The sisters of ZTA could not be more excited about the week ahead.  The girls have been working so hard this week and look forward to raising money and spreading awareness about such an important cause that is close to all of our hearts.  Be sure to check back after this week to see how Zeta Tau Alpha’s Think Pink week went and some pictures of the sisters working toward such a great cause!

Remember to THINK PINK with ZTA!

ADPi receives the Golden Lion

Alpha Delta Pi, Eta Pi chapter, has had a very busy yet exciting start to the semester! We recently received a visit from the ADPi International president and began the semester in a spectacular, yet completely unexpected way. Our international president, Ms. Tammy Pinkston, surprised us at our weekly chapter meeting with the Maxine Blake Golden Lion Award!

This was the first time in ADPi history that the award had been given out of the ADPi Grand Convention that takes place once every two years. Traditionally, the Golden Lion has been the most coveted award distributed at the convention, as it “indicates the highest level of performance and efficiency for collegiate chapters of Alpha Delta Pi,” and is “the highest honor a chapter may receive.”

The following Monday (9/26) started our favorite week of the year, ADPi’s Safari Hunt! Safari Hunt is our annual philanthropy week in which we raise money and collect donations and can tabs for our national philanthropy, The Ronald McDonald House (RMH).

We had 16 fraternities and two sororities participate in Safari Hunt this week. These organizations strived to win Safari Hunt through ROARing at sisters, change booths, can tabs, grocery donations to RMH, a Jimmy Johns day, Project Catwalk and Field Games.

Alpha Delta Pi’s mascot is Alphie the lion, hence the ROARing! All throughout the week sisters enjoyed being ROARed at, whether it was a quiet ROAR in the middle of ABP or groups of fraternity men and sorority women ROARing at the top of their lungs in class.

Donation booths on the drillfield and in Squires collected can tabs and change for RMH. Can tabs were donated since it only takes 75 pounds of can tabs to pay for a family to stay in the Ronald McDonald house for a night free of charge!

Jimmy Johns day took place on Tuesday, and fraternities and sororities received points for eating there. The restaurant gave ADPi 15% of all proceeds from that night to donate to RMH.

Thursday afternoon was Project Catwalk, an “anything but clothes” fashion show that took place at Top of the Stairs. Fraternities and sororities created a fashion line that included casual wear, formal wear and a swimsuit and received bonus points for anything RMH or ADPi themed.

Field games ended the week. Fraternities and sororities participated in a multitude of events including tug o’ war, a banana eating contest, a limbo competition and a relay race which comprised of leap frog, a dizzy-bat race, tumbling and pie-ing an ADPi in the face!

The final numbers aren’t in yet, but we’re hopeful that this was our most successful Safari Hunt ever!

What a fabulous and fun way to start the semester! We look forward to participating in other fraternity and sorority philanthropy events as well as other community service projects throughout the coming weeks.

The Golden Lion award!

 Safari Hunt Field Games in Oak Lane