Last week Drury students celebrated homecoming week, a week filled with traditional festivities with the purpose of increasing school spirit for students and alumni alike. What better time is there to highlight some of the most spirited and giving organizations on our campus?

Drury hosts four sororities and four fraternities, all of which give to at least two philanthropies, or charities. You may have seen members of Zeta Tau Alpha (Zeta) with pink ribbons on their backpacks, dedicated to breast cancer research, or maybe you’ve noticed bins to donate food for a food drive sponsored for Lambda Chi Alpha last semester.

The Drury Greek brothers and sisters support their causes faithfully and enthusiastically, and some students were eagerly willing to share their favorite experiences.

Delta Delta Delta, more commonly known as Tri Delta, is a national sorority, of which our Drury chapter supports the national St. Jude Children’s Hospital and the local Champion Athletes of the Ozarks. It is their tradition to host “Are You Smarter than a Delta,” a trivia night which raises funds for St Jude’s. This is the favorite philanthropy event of Drury sophomore and Tri Delta member Molly Morrison, who emphasizes that “not only is this a fun way to get other Greek organizations involved, but also some other campus organizations and the campus population as a whole.”

This is true for the goals of other sororities’ and fraternities’ fundraising events as well, including Pi Beta Phi, which supports the national Read Lead Achieve program, which works to put an end to children’s illiteracy, as well as the complementary local Boyd Book Club program at Boyd Elementary. Mei Hanline, Drury freshman, speaks highly of her sorority’s “Putting On the Lips” event, which is an annual lip-sync competition of which all proceeds go toward their national philanthropy. She says, “Seeing all the fraternities, sororities, sports teams and other groups around campus get together and help us achieve our goal was an amazing feeling and made me realize how special the community is here. However, not only is ‘Putting on the Lips’ the biggest philanthropy event of the year, but it is also held in honor of a Pi Beta Phi sister that passed away due to a drunk driving accident several years ago. As such, we always make it a priority to have a guest speaker open the show to remind the audience of the dangers and consequences of drunk driving.”

Byron King, a member of Lambda Chi Alpha, or LCA, has some big ideas to grow the giving spirit of his fraternity, which supports the widespread Feeding America, and the local Ozarks Food Harvest. Along with his favorite existing event, their fall Watermelon Fest. King says that he hopes to implement a “Homemade Salsa Competition,” possibly with live music by Drury alumni, and other festivities.

The remaining two sororities here on campus are Kappa Delta, supporting, nationally: Prevent Child Abuse America and Girl Scouts of USA, and, locally: Isabel’s House (a crisis nursery); and Zeta Tau Alpha, supporting, nationally, Breast Cancer Awareness and Education, as well as the Springfield Dream Center, a local Christian charity.

The other three fraternities at Drury include the Kappa Alpha Order, supporting the national Muscular Dystrophy Association, and Isabel’s House; Sigma Nu, supporting, nationally, St. Jude Children’s Hospital, and Character Counts, and, locally, Ozarks Food Harvest, and the Boys and Girls Club; and Sigma Pi, supporting, nationally, Donate Life, and the Amazing Day Foundation, as well as the local MS150, a bike ride to raise funds and awareness for Multiple Sclerosis.

Overall, these eight Greek life organizations make up a lively, giving community here at Drury University.