Emily Tumlin
Guest writer
The sororities on campus have wasted no time with helping others during the month of October. October is the designated philanthropy month for Zeta Tau Alpha, Epsilon Sigma and Phi Mu. All three organizations have been raising money and awareness for their adopted causes for both local and national organizations.
For example, the wave of service activity can be seen in Phi Mu’s raising money for their philanthropy, Children’s Miracle Network, by having a fall caramel apple sale on campus.
Zeta Tau Alpha also kicked off the month with “Pink Week” with the goal of raising money and bettering breast cancer awareness. Zeta’s philanthropy chair Amber Davis, a sophomore early childhood education major, was in charge of organizing and planning all of Pink Week’s events this year.
“Pink Week is Zeta Tau Alpha’s week to shine and for us to show Shorter University our purpose,” Davis said.
The girls started the week by decking out the campus with pink ribbons and pink pumpkins. Little pink rubber ducks also floated in the fountains. Zeta also hosted other events to raise money throughout the week such as a spirit night at Steak and Shake, the “Think Pink” Festival and “Pie a Zeta,” which Davis said was their most successful event.
Toward the end of the week, the sisters put on Big Man on Campus, a pageant that guys from all over campus participated in. Finally, the Zetas had their annual pink-out game where they gave out pink ribbons, shower cards and took donations for breast cancer awareness.
For their last event, the Zetas will host their annual Pinktoberfest, a fall celebration held in the Austin Moses room on Oct. 29 at 7 p.m.
Additionally, this month has been an important, exciting and somewhat new experience for Epsilon Sigma. Last year, the sorority officially declared
domestic violence awareness as their philanthropy. This week was their first philanthropy week, and it was largely coordinated by senior English major Becca Newell.
The main goal of the week was for Ep Sig to raise awareness and show what a big influence domestic violence has on so many people. The sisters partner with the Hospitality House for Women in Rome, and a portion of their profits go to the National Domestic Violence Alliance.
Some events they organized in order to raise money and awareness included: the Shamrockathon 5-K race, a front circle thrift shop, Moe’s spirit night and the “purple-out” football game.
Newell said the philanthropy is extremely important for their sorority.
“We value it because some of us have experienced domestic violence,” said Newell. “We’ve worked with hospitality houses before and we’ve seen it in action and seen the survivors through our volunteer efforts.”
All three sororities appear to have made a vast impact on not only their philanthropies but in raising awareness on campus and in the community. The passion and love for each cause is undeniable and ever growing.
