By: Jerrica Shine

Every chapter of Greek life on any college campus has a different philanthropy: an organization or cause that they affiliate themselves with and support through fundraising. Although there are many obvious differences between philanthropies and the events that support them, there are also noticeable similarities.

Anyone attending a college that offers Greek life has most likely seen posters, shirts, or heard announcements about an event that a chapter is hosting in order to raise money or awareness for their philanthropy.

Those who have attended more than one event know how easy it is to identify the similarities between the events. For anyone who has never been to a philanthropy event, here are seven things to expect at these events.

1. Raffles

There will usually be raffle tickets for sale at the entrance of the event. They are often cheap and easy to buy in bulk so you can purchase as many as you’d like. Then you attend the first part of the event whether it be watching a performance or playing games. During the intermission or after a predetermined amount of time, someone will announce the drawing of raffle tickets for various prizes. These prizes are offered for a boost in morale for those who attend and support the philanthropy. Often times the prize list includes Taco Bell coupons, kitchenware, shirts and a variety of gift cards.

2. Over-priced shirts

In order to advertise the philanthropy event or the organization that the event is supporting, the Greek chapter will design, order and sell shirts. The shirts are usually sold for $15. There can be many reasons for the high prices. These reasons include expensive designs or websites or the shirt money is being donated to the organization. Greek organizations can make these for their own events, or the school can offer the shirts to anyone on campus. For example, Missouri State University has a Facebook page dedicated to the circulation of shirts made for different events and organizations on campus.

3. Free/all-you-can-eat food

“Everyone loves free food,” says Meg Cunningham, chapter president of  Drury University’s Delta Delta Delta. The term “free food” carries almost as much weight as the phrase “snow day” to students of any age. Most of the time, the event will have a food table or snack area for volunteers. Cunningham said, “you can wrap people in if you tell them that there’s going to be free food there.” Some events are even based around the idea of free food. Drury University’s Zeta Tau Alpha sorority hosted an event titled “Queso for a Cure.” This event was fundraising for breast cancer awareness and education. Students and faculty were able to pay a fee and create a team and make queso for a taste contest. Others were able to pay in order to judge the event and eat endless amounts of the queso.

4. The technical problem

“Lights, camera, action” is often times an inaccurate representation of how technology is handled at philanthropy events. There have been many microphones that shut down and event coordinators were unable to locate a new one. The most complicated technologies that a person can use are lighting systems. Pi Beta Phi at Drury University hosted a lip-syncing battle for children’s literacy and could not figure out how to play the music for the performing group. They resorted to knock-knock jokes until technology support was able to fix the problem. In the end, no matter how severe the malfunction or who was at fault, they always make for some of the best stories.

5. Members of other Greek organizations

The support that Greek chapters have for one another is truly inspiring. This is very apparent in the amount of Greek students that show up for other chapters’ events. Cunningham said it’s always good to see people supporting other philanthropies and organizations. This community support is something that is a very common occurrence within Greek life on nearly any campus, so expect to see members from other chapters winning those raffle prizes and buying the shirts.

6. Professors

More often than not philanthropy events will be held on campus or nearby. Due to this, it is not uncommon for professors to attend. Cunningham said, “it is awesome that they are supporting their students.” Professors come to events to support their specific students or even their university’s Greek life. This is a very common sight that the Greek life members, community, university, and other professors truly enjoy.

7. Music

Whether you’re outside in a field or in an auditorium, you will always hear music playing at any event. “Music is played to get people excited,” Cunningham said. When you hear a great song play over a speaker, you just can’t help but dance and laugh. This is a tactic used by everyone to boost the energy of the crowd and increase the fun. These playlists are often compiled by Greek members, and no matter how different the songs are, they guarantee a fun and exciting day.