Colgate’s fraternities and sororities have organized and taken part in a panoply of philanthropic endeavors this semester. DKE helped with the Hamilton Book Fair in September and brothers Eli Rubin and Drew Spievack represented DKE by reading to children at the Hamilton Public Library later that month. DKE also helped out in the run/walk for breast cancer. In October, DKE Brothers cleaned up the Chenango Trail, as well as cleaning up the JCTOD in Utica. DKE’s “biggest event of the semester was the Haunted House,” said DKE Philanthropy Chair Aaron Weddle. On November 30, DKE brothers participated in the Up ‘Til Dawn letter-writing event for St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, which focuses on finding a cure for cancer and providing treatment for pediatric cancer patients. Sigma Chi also did work for a medical charity, raising about $1500 dollars for the Duke Medical Center for Cancer Research through an auction, according to Sigma Chi Philanthropy Chair Francis Luisi. “Phi Delta Theta had another strong semester for philanthropy,” said Will Birnie, Phi Delt Philanthropy Chair. Phi Delta Theta participated in two blood drives, one in September in which over forty pints were collected. “At the most recent blood drive, just this last week, Phi Delta Theta had its first ever two-day drive. Phi Delt collected almost 80 pints of blood, “enough to save over one-hundred and forty lives,” Birnie noted. Phi Delt also hosted a pumpkin-carving event with Sisters from Gamma Phi Beta. “Over fifty kids showed up to carve pumpkins, eat sweets, and do arts and crafts,” Birnie said. The brothers also played field games with the children. “Red Light Green Light was the favorite for all involved,” Birnie said. Phi Delt Brothers participated in the Cove’s service day. “Brothers were dispatched for the second year in a row to the Utica Firehouse to help at the pancake breakfast,” Birnie said. Brothers also went to Heritage Farms to help “do a little fall cleaning.” “The brothers of Phi Delta Theta look forward to another great semester of philanthropy in the Spring,” Birnie said. Tri Delta “has been incredibly involved with both philanthropic fundraising and community service involvement this semester,” said Tri Delta Philanthropy Chair Kay Traester. “Our sisters always strive to find meaningful and unique ways to directly benefit the local and surrounding communities with a variety of service endeavors.” The Tri Delta sisters co-sponsored a Triple Play Kickball Tournament with Phi Kappa Tau, Kappa Alpha Theta, and Delta Upsilon in September “raising over $800 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, our national philanthropy,” Traester said. Tri Delta sponsored the Midnight Pancake Breakfast together with Theta Chi and “raised over $1000 to purchase special bikes called duets for two of our senior sister’s cousins with spinal muscular atrophy. It was a huge success, and everyone was thrilled with the turn-out for the event,” Traester said. Additionally, Tri Delta also leads Children’s Programs at the Bookstore every Saturday morning, and held a large Halloween party on October 30. Sisters also represented Tri Delta at “Adopt Broad Street, where we cleaned Broad St. on Saturday and Sunday mornings for three weekends during the fall semester,” Traester said. In addition to members of DKE, two Tri Delta teams participated in the Up ‘Til Dawn letter-writing event to raise money for St. Jude’s and cancer research. Tri Delta organized a Thanksgiving meal for Hamilton Manor, “a home for numerous local poor elderly residents in Hubbardsville. The chapter will also adopt a few local families in the Hamilton area for the holiday season to ensure they have gifts and food for the holidays,” Traester said. A continuing Tri Delta initiative is the “Box Tops for Education campaign to raise money for better supplies and technology for Hamilton Central School,” said Traester. The sisters also lead a flip-top drive “to donate the tops of soda cans to Shriner’s Hospital, where the pure aluminum can easily be made into much-needed medical equipment,” Traester said.Next week, Tri Delta will “co-sponsor the Sidekicks’ end-of-semester party at the Palace Theater on December 6,” said Traester. Commenting on Tri Delta’s extensive philanthropic activity, Traester said, “Tri Deltas are completely commited to their philanthropic efforts, and this desire to help those in need extends well beyond the confines of the chapter-evidenced in everything the sisters are involved with outside of the sisterhood.” Kappa Kappa Gamma has also had a very busy semester. Earlier in the semester Kappa “hosted a Car Wash with Beta and raised $210 dollars in total. We split the proceeds and our portion was donated to Reading is Fundatmental, our national philanthropy organization,” said Karla Yeh, the Kappa Kappa Gamma Philanthropy Chair. This is the first year that Kappa Kappa Gamma has associated with Reading is Fundamental. Kappa sisters also participated in Colgate’s campus-wide service day, “helping to clean and organize the Emmaus House in Utica,” Yeh said. Ongoing Kappa initiatives are “events such as visiting a group of ladies at the Madison Lane apartments in town every Friday for about an hour and a half doing various crafts and Clean-Up Broad Street on three Saturday mornings this semester,” Yeh said. Kappa sisters also “regularly helps out with the Saturday Morning Bookstore programs for children at the Bookstore each weekend,” said Yeh, which the Tri Delta sisters participate in as well. Yeh said that Kappa’s “major event this semester was hosting the Roswell Cancer Institute Banquet in support of further research for Cancer. This event was held on Saturday, November 20th. We hosted three speakers, a raffle with about 15 prizes, dinner, and entertainment. We have held many bake sales to raise funds for the Institute as well.” Kappa also participated in the Up ‘Til Dawn letter-writing event with DKE and Tri Delta. “Next semester, our major event is the annual Kappa-Theta Spaghetti Dinner to benefit the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Research Foundation-all proceeds are donated to the foundation,” Yeh said Kappa will also help the Community Action Planning board to sell Mother’s Day cards in April and May of next semester. This semester Theta has “co-sponsored a kickball event which benefited St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, sponsored a water table for the BCAC run/walk, participated in Campus Wide Service Day-we had the biggest team-and held ‘Cupcakes for CASA’ (Court Appointed Special Advocates) bake sales about every other week at home hockey games and the Coop,” said Theta Philanthropy Chair ZB Hendee. CASA is Theta’s national philanthropy to which Theta donates “locally to a CASA based in Oneida,” Hendee said. Later this semester Theta will “host an annual Christmas Party with DU for mentally challenged adults and will continue to do our ‘Cupcakes for CASA’ bake sales which have been an enormous success,” Hendee said. These and other Colgate fraternities and sororities continue to be vital philanthropic forces working to build community at Colgate, in Hamilton and throughout the country.