Volume 4, Issue 12

Chi Omega Makes a Wish Come True

Jonathan Joy

The Zeta Theta Chapter of Chi Omega had the honor of granting the wish of a 14-year-old girl through their work with the Make-A-Wish foundation.  In the past, Chi Omega has hosted a yearly Mr. MTSU pageant and donated the proceeds to the foundation.  This year, the sorority was able to grant their first wish on their own.   

Shardai, a high school freshman from Smyrna, suffers from a skin disease that causes painful sores on her skin.  Her wish was to meet world renowned illusionist, Criss Angel.  With the proceeds from the 37^th annual Mr. MTSU pageant held in the spring, Chi Omega was able to grant her wish.  They surprised Shardai in the BAS State Farm room on Monday November 26.

“She thought she was a judge for our annual Mr. MTSU pageant, which usually takes place in the spring,” said Jessica Turri, philanthropic coordinator for Chi Omega.

The first floor entrance of the building was decorated with a sign reading, “Mr. MTSU Auditions” to continue leading her on.

The event began with Brandon McNary, brother of Sigma Nu, announcing the event.

First to “audition” was Austin Waguespack, brother of Pi Kappa Alpha, with a guitar version of “Shawty Is a Ten” by Chris Brown.  Second to audition was Patrick Mertes, brother of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, with his rendition of Ben Harper’s “Steal My Kisses.”

Finally, Samual Delgado, a brother of Sigma Nu, performed his own rap ending with the line:  “You thought you were judgin’ Mr. MTSU, Instead we thought we would make your wish come true.”

Immediately, Shardai’s face lit up as she read the projection screen which announced that her wish was being granted.  She will be traveling to see Criss Angel perform live in Las Vegas on December 14 and meeting him for breakfast the following morning.

“She looked so happy,” Turri said.  “At the end, she gave me her cell phone number to put up in the chapter room because she wanted all of our sisters to have it.”

To add on to the success of this year, Chi Omega has a goal of granting two wishes next year.

Greek of the Week

Whitney Carr

Many of you know Nick Palmer as president of Kappa Alpha, but now that he has passed that torch, he has found himself in another leadership position. Ready to take action and improve fraternity recruitment, Nick has become the new Vice President of Recruitment for IFC. Nathan Haynes first brought the position to Nick’s attention and the two discussed the direction it was taking.

Nick hopes that, “[…] we can continue to make progress in recruiting new members for IFC fraternities.” He also is looking forward to improving the roles of Rho Alphas during recruitment.

In his spare time (which is just that, spare), this senior Organizational Communication major enjoys knitting, underwater basket weaving, Shakespeare and croquet. When time allows, the former KA president loves long walks on the beach.

Nick Palmer has his focus on the future of IFC and claims that his favorite part is, “Building relationships with frat guys everywhere and broadening my horizons in the frat world.”

We look forward to seeing the success and improvements made to the recruitment process and wish you, Mr. Palmer, the best of luck!

Campus Holds Forum for Director of Greek Affairs Candidates    

John Carter

MTSU has moved into the final stages of filling the Director of Greek Affairs vacancy, narrowing the list of candidates to two.  Both applicants have experience presiding over Greek systems and are sure to bring fresh ideas and new perspectives to campus with them.  The first, Cara Dawn Byford, has served a total of eight years as a Greek professional, five at Jacksonville State University and three at Georgia Southern University.  From 2005 to the present, she has worked as the Director of Member Services for the national headquarters of ΦΜ Fraternity, with whom she is affiliated.  Next is Kathleen Gillan, who has been a Greek professional for six years, two at LSU-Shreveport, three at Louisiana-Monroe, and the last two years at Mercer University.

Both candidates have full days as they are entertained by MTSU, with Byford coming December 4^th and Gillan December 5^th.  They will meet with many important members of campus, notably Dr. Gene Fitch, Dr. Robert Glenn, Dr. Colette Taylor, and Coordinator of Greek Affairs Carrie Smith Youell.  They will also be conducting open forum sessions with any interested Greek students at 3:30 p.m. each day.  Byford will be in room 109 of the Jackson Building, while Gillan will be in the KUC Room 313.  It is imperative that all interested Greek students attend the open forum meetings in order to give the university the best idea of which candidate is the correct fit for the position.        

Derby Days Shows Promising Results

Jonathan Joy

Sigma Chi is hosting their annual Derby Days Nov. 26-30 to benefit Children’s Miracle Network.  With this year’s theme, “Have Yourself a Derby Little Christmas,” Derby Days is a week-long event raising money for their philanthropy and having fun.

This year’s fundraising goal is $9000.

“The benefits from Derby Days are split 50/50 between Children’s Miracle Network on behalf of the Eta Gamma Chapter of Sigma Chi and the winning sorority’s philanthropy on behalf of their chapter,” said Blake Waring, president of Sigma Chi.

The sororities participate in a number of events throughout the official week of Derby Days such as:  Derby Darling Pageant, Derby Chase, Penny Wars, Derby Olympics, Christmas Caroling Competition, Brother Auction, Door Decoration Competition, Toys for Tots Donations, selling ads for the Derby Day manual, and selling t-shirts to go towards the proceeds that the philanthropies will receive.

Derby Days is based on a point system that includes all of the events, most providing points for 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd place, and spirit points that will be awarded for extra efforts that go above and beyond the events scheduled by the Derby Daddy, Greg German.

“Spirit points are awarded for the fun extras that the sororities do for the fraternity such as house decorations or going above and beyond in showing their spirit during events,” said German.  “Sororities can gain a maximum amount of these points per day in order to keep spirit points a controllable factor in the point system.”

“I am very excited about Derby Days for the fall of 2007,” said Waring.  “The enthusiasm from the sororities and brothers alike has caused this year’s Derby Days to show great promise in raising a substantial amount of money that will be donated to a good cause.”

Announcements:

• Greek Leadership Summit is January 11-13. It is mandatory for all Chapter Presidents and all Council Exec Members!  This is for Gold Standard!

• Applications for appointed positions in NPC and IFC are due by December 4!

• Student Activity Fees are due December 14 by 4:30!