Starting at 12 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 27th and lasting a full 24 hours, the sisters of Emporia State’s Alpha Sigma Alpha sorority and brothers of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity joined together to raise money and awareness for important community organizations.
How did they do this? By going up and down a teeter-totter.
Set up at locations near Kellogg Circle and Memorial Union, Emporia panhellenic group members spent varied periods of time – some even several hours – teeter-tottering to attract the attention of drivers on nearby streets. Other Greek Life volunteers held up signs and collected money from drivers and passersby for Emporia’s Big Brothers and Big Sisters program and the SOS, Inc, a local non-profit that helps those affected by domestic violence, stalking, child abuse, human trafficking and neglect.
Alpha Sigma Alpha President Kalia Keo considers the event yet another hit in a historic run of teeter-totter events.
“I think the turnout (has) been great, I’m always really glad that these two chapters can come together,” said Keo. “It’s a very historical get-together that we do this fundraiser for these organizations.”
The volunteers are thrilled at the success of the event, especially considering one important change from past years: the location. The teeter totter has been moved to very particular locations in an effort to attract more potential donors.
“Something different that we did this year is that the teeter totter is on campus,” said Keo. “Usually, we do this at the Sigma Phi Epsilon house, but we decided to do it on campus this year, hoping for more donations, more visibility and to raise more awareness.”
But the University’s panhellenic organizations know that physical location isn’t the only way to make the event seen. A historically rooted event with such a singular visual component naturally generates buzz on social media, and the volunteers are more than willing to oblige any desire to engage the Emporia community online.
“You’re welcome to take pictures with the teeter-totter, we encourage it,” said Keo. “We love that visibility on social media, tag us, be sure to interact with us on social media and come hang out for our recruitment events.”
