Truman Greek Life offers many opportunities to raise funds for the community and give back — both as individual organizations and as a Greek community.
Kayla Loper, campus activities program advisor at Truman State, says during Greek Week, all the Greek organizations on campus pull together to raise funds and support for one main philanthropy.
Last year, the cause for Greek Week was the Northeast Missouri Inclusion Project, which is in the process of building an inclusive playground near the Kirksville YMCA so children of all different abilities can play together.
“Last year in Greek Week when we raised $20,000 was definitely one of the best moments of my job,” Loper says. “It was really cool to see a group of students that planned that week be so empowered by the money they were raising.”
While some organizations have long-standing traditions of certain philanthropic events, some, such as Delta Zeta and Delta Phi Epsilon, are working to create new philanthropy events.
Delta Phi Epsilon, which just received its charter in Spring 2015 looks to help from the Greek community when planning its philanthropy events. Truman’s Delta Zeta chapter has organized a brand-new event for one of their main philanthropies, the Starkey Hearing Foundation.
Hike For Hearing
Delta Zeta hosted its first annual Hike for Hearing event Oct. 3 with proceeds going to the Starkey Hearing Foundation, which builds speech clinics throughout the world.
This event, and its relationship with the Starkey Hearing Foundation, supports what has been Delta Zeta’s philanthropic focus since 1954, speech and hearing.
Delta Zeta president, senior Olivia Lanser, says this is a fairly new event. Lanser says she learned about Hike For Hearing during February when the Delta Zeta nationals announced the event idea and its pledge to donate $5 million to the Starkey Hearing Foundation during a five-year span.
Lanser says she relayed what she learned to the Delta Zeta vice president of philanthropy, senior Ashley Bredow, who then began organizing the event.
“For the first year, I was solely in charge, and kind of reached out for help,” Bredow says.
Bredow says she had the summer to prepare the Hike for Hearing event. She says she was joined this semester by junior Olivia Louderman, sophomore Katy King and freshman Mary-Kate Mudd, other members of Delta Zeta.
“I have had a great time planning this,” Bredow says. “I think it’s for an awesome cause and I am proud to be the person who has been able to do it the first time. I felt honored.”
Hannah Mahon, senior communication disorders major, says she was excited to hear about this event because with all this publicity and support, it could also help the field she is entering to grow, especially because October is Hearing Awareness Month.
Bredow and Lanser say they hope to involve Truman’s speech and hearing and communication disorders departments in Delta Zeta’s philanthropy events during the future to have an impact close to home as well as internationally.
Delta Zeta organizes other events for its speech and hearing philanthropy, one of which is the Learn to Listen Weekduring the spring to promote the care and protection of people’s hearing.
The hike consisted of a roughly 2-mile walk around Thousand Hills State Park. Participants’ registration fees of $15 covered their entry and a T-shirt.
Bredow and Lanser expected nearly 150 participants in the event. They ran out of t-shirts when the count of hikers rose to over 200.
Truman’s Newest Sorority
Delta Phi Epsilon, which was chartered last spring, is still in the process of setting up its philanthropy events.
Delta Phi Epsilon’s main philanthropies are the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, the Delta Phi Epsilon Education Foundation and the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders.
Senior Beth Keene, Delta Phi Epsilon president, says the founding process for the new group started last winter, and Truman’s Greek community has been welcoming.
“They’ve all just been really helpful,” Keene says in regards to the other panhellenic leaders on campus. “Building connections on campus is nice, too.”
Keene says she hopes Delta Phi Epsilon will partner with other campus groups during the future to promote causes as a cohesive group, such as Greek Week events every spring.