While Greek organizations on Grounds often give back to the community through required donations and philanthropy events, the chapters’ contributions can be more than just money.
Ashwanth Samuel, a third-year College student and IFC President, commended fraternities for their efforts to volunteer more in the community, instead of strictly concentrating on raising money for organizations. Samuel’s own fraternity, Phi Delta Theta, works with Habitat for Humanity. This spring, Phi Delta Theta members volunteered for a “Build Day,” where they helped build a house in the Lochlyn Hill Development in Charlottesville.
“A common criticism is that IFC fraternities just raise money and ‘throw’ it at organizations. The attempts to volunteer within the community are efforts to negate that notion,” Samuel said in an email to The Cavalier Daily. “The powerful thing is that the IFC is such a large institution, especially at UVA, and being able to harness that power to promote good philanthropic and service works can have a tremendous impact on individuals and communities.”
In addition to individual fraternities hosting their own events for their national or individually selected philanthropies, IFC organizes charitable events for members of the Charlottesville community or relevant organizations. Last semester, the IFC worked with all of its member fraternities to help a local Girl Scout with a heart condition sell over 800 boxes of Girl Scout cookies.
“With this event, you see the huge power that can come from [the IFC],” said Robert Larmore, a second-year Commerce student and IFC community service chair. “It’s not about fraternities. It’s not about parties. It’s just about using your resources to help other people in the community.”
On April 27, the IFC is also planning an event through the organization Rise Against Hunger, and aims to package over 50,0000 meals for families in Nicaragua and Honduras. This will be the first council-wide service initiative in recent years.
“We’ve had a really good semester thus far with IFC-wide events, which hasn’t really been carried out particularly well in the past,” Larmore said.
Fraternities also seek to make a difference in causes which are personally meaningful to their brothers. Every year, the University’s Phi Society chapter votes on its philanthropic organization, which allows members to choose organizations they care about.
In the past, the fraternity has raised money for foundations that support research for a cure for the Wounded Warriors project — a topic that hit close to home for many members.
This year, Phi Society adopted the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation as its philanthropy after one member whose sibling has the disease reached out to Wyatt Miller, a second-year College student and Phi Society philanthropy chair. Last Saturday, the chapter organized the event “Phi Zoociety” to raise money, with a petting zoo and live music.
“I definitely think that philanthropy is the most important contribution that a fraternity can make to the school and community,” Miller said. “It’s all about having fun and giving back at the same time.”
Some fraternities have faced some skepticism about the extent to which their philanthropies are actually philanthropic. In early April, the Inter-Sorority Council released a statement to Sigma Chi fraternity to list grievances the sorority community had with its philanthropy event, entitled Derby Days, a week-long series of events wherein sororities compete in tasks and help Sigma Chi raise money for the UVa Children's Hospital.
“Next year will definitely be more inclusive and instead of just sororities we are going to look out to expand to other clubs and organizations at UVa,” said third-year Engineering student Marty Knauf, the philanthropy co-chair of Sigma Chi.
Over the past several years, Derby Days has raised over $20,000 each year, with the proceeds going to a cancer research fund at U.Va. Children’s hospital. Last fall, Sigma Chi members also took hospital tours and met some of the children they are helping and even took an excursion to Jump Cville with some of the sick children and their families.
“There’s more going on to U.Va. than just schoolwork and partying,” Knauf said. “So [interacting with these children] is a nice break from what we do at U.Va. and kind of focusing on benefiting the community.”
Pi Lambda Phi also hosts a daytime Spring philanthropy event called Pi Lam Jam. The event features local bands and a tie dye t-shirt station to benefit the Sexual Assault Resource Agency.
“When I was first rushing I did not know initially that SARA was Pi Lam’s philanthropy, but when I found out I was incredibly proud,” said Kelly O’Meara, a third-year Architecture student and Pi Lambda Phi brotherhood chair. “Because of this partnership I think we’ve done a better job at being those active bystanders.”
The brothers of Pi Lambda Phi also participate in SARA’s event, “Walk a Mile for SARA,” which takes place on the Downtown Mall and aims to raise awareness about sexual assault and bystander intervention.
“It’s really a shame that [sexual assault] is a problem in Greek life, and we’ll be the first to admit it,” O’Meara said. “But, I think organizations like SARA and this partnership really kind of shows that we’re trying. We’re trying to do better.”
O’Meara said he looks to other Greek inter-fraternity groups — like the National Pan-Hellenic Council and the Multicultural Greek Council — as prime examples for how the IFC and ISC should improve their philanthropic endeavors.
“So when I look at them, I look at them as inspiration,” O’Meara said. “They are always giving money and throwing these events. Most IFC and ISC fraternities and sororities, we do our fall and spring events, but they kind of come off as these one-hits to get the philanthropy in … I think philanthropies can be a really fun event, but this should be more than just an excuse to throw a party. So that’s what everyone's been trying to work on.”
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