In the heart of Hamilton, N.Y., 84 Broad St. is home to the Gamma Sigma chapter of Delta Delta Delta, a sorority built upon the pillars of sisterhood and philanthropy. Led by current president and senior Madison Elias, Delta Delta Delta stands strong behind these values, particularly philanthropy.
“You come together with other people who share the same values, and you contribute to give back to a bigger cause,” Elias said. “It helps us have a national connection with chapters throughout the Northeast.”
Over the past 25 years, Delta Delta Delta has been contributing to St. Jude, supporting the hospital network’s mission of helping families financially and socially while they experience childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Senior Grace Fraser is director of philanthropy, and helps remind the members of this fact by showcasing a patient of the month and highlighting the impact the organization has on children and their families.
“I think St. Jude is such an amazing organization because it really takes down the financial barrier to healthcare,” Fraser said.
Delta Delta Delta has several different events and avenues to raise money, such as their letter-writing campaign, Sincerely Yours, and their pancake breakfast, Tri-Hop. Held in the spring, Tri-Hop invites the entire Colgate community to support St. Jude. Sorority members sell Tri-Hop tickets to their fellow students, giving the members a chance to interact with their community and showcase what their philanthropy does for others.
“We raised $57,000 last year, and that’s a consistent number for us,” Fraser said. “That’s a big difference that we are making.”
This number also stands out among other Greek life organizations.
“Tri-Delt nationally has raised the most in philanthropy of any Greek life organization. They’ve raised about 100 million [dollars] for St. Jude,” Elias said.
Colgate’s Delta Delta Delta sorority has been awarded national recognition for the amount of money that they have raised as an individual chapter. This is calculated in consideration of the chapter and campus size in relation to the amount of money raised.
Senior Josephine DeBono has seen not only the impact of Delta Delta Delta’s fundraising but also the hard work that goes into making that impact possible.
“Witnessing [Delta Delta Delta’s] commitment to philanthropy through our national partnership with St. Jude over the course of my college career has been truly incredible. It’s the hard work of my fellow Deltas who plan events and initiatives like Tri-Hop and Sincerely Yours that makes our contributions to the cause of ending childhood cancer possible,” DeBono said.
Seniors Fraser and Jenna Hayson then even got the opportunity to visit Tri-Delta Place in Memphis, Tenn., a temporary housing organization for families whose children are receiving treatment. The organization covers everything from food to amenities when these families need it the most.
“To me, that was really eye-opening, having something that the money goes towards. Seeing that tangible impact is something that I think that every person in Tri-Delt aligns with, and we obviously want to see that continue,” Fraser said. “Being able to see the impact of 25 years of partnership — imagine what another 25 years or even just our four years on campus [can do]. Tri-Delt has a really strong alumni base … it’s four years plus the rest of your life that you have this connection and this drive.”
Delta Delta Delta supports the mission of St. Jude through their fundraising events, and is only able to do this through the drive and determination of their members, friends, families and the Colgate and Hamilton community.
“Bottom line, this is something that we are really, really proud of and know we’re good at — Tri-Delt raises a lot of money for St. Jude,” Elias said. “We are very cognizant of the fact that while this might just be a ‘show up and sell pancakes,’ St. Jude has touched people personally. People in our chapter, people in the community that participate in our events, people who are going to anonymously donate online — we don’t forget about that.”
Fraser echoed these sentiments.
“This isn’t just a mandatory thing for us as a part of Greek life,” Fraser said. “To us, this is equal to all the other aspects too. We want people to not only join for the sisterhood community, but also to make a difference.”
