Delta Gamma and Pi Beta Phi host philanthropy events and profit shares

Delta Gamma and Pi Beta Phi will wrap up a series of philanthropy events on Wednesday with Pi Beta Phi's Ballin' for Books. On Monday evening, Delta Gamma and Pi Beta Phi hosted profit shares at two nearby Chipotles and on Tuesday Delta Gamma held Spike for Sight, a volleyball tournament doubling as a fundraiser for the visually impaired.

Fifty percent of the proceeds raised at their respective Chipotle profit shares will be sent to each chapter’s affiliated organization. Delta Gamma’s profit share supports Service for Sight, an organization that offers resources and care to the blind and visually impaired, while Pi Beta Phi’s sends the funds they raise to their national philanthropy, Read>Lead>Achieve, an organization striving to improve literacy among children.

Both groups noted that despite having their profit shares occur on the same day, they were not competing and were supporting one another.

“I know a lot of my sisters will be going to both the Pi Phi profit share and the Delta Gamma profit share," Delta Gamma president Meghan Roberts said. "So we don’t really see it as a competition necessarily because we’re both raising money for really great causes, they just happen to be at the same restaurant on the same day."

Julia Rivara, president of Pi Beta Phi, agreed, noting that many members of Pi Beta Phi attend Delta Gamma's other philanthropy event, Spike for Sight. Spike for Sight used to be known as Anchor Slam, but the sorority changed the name in order to avoid confusion with another Delta Gamma event, Anchor Splash. 

The name is not the only change to Delta Gamma's annual volleyball tournament. Fiona Lynch, Delta Gamma's philanthropy chair, said teams that signed up to play had the opportunity to donate to a team jar at Delta Gamma's table in commons. Every dollar a team raised translated into points. Teams could also win points by winning games and having the best uniforms, and the team with the most points would win Spike for Sight.

Pi Beta Phi will host its annual spring philanthropy event Ballin’ for Books on March 23 in the Weinstein Center. The event is a 3-on-3 basketball tournament with all proceeds benefitting Read>Lead>Achieve.

Contact news writer Kay Dervishi at kay.dervishi@richmond.edu