By Benjamin Roehlke, Staff Writer
The annual Fall Fest fundraiser was held on Oct. 7 by the sisters of Sigma Kappa along with the brothers of Phi Mu Delta on the Sigma Kappa lawn at Susquehanna. This event is one of the organizations’ fundraiser for the fall semester, and benefits each organization’s philanthropy.
All the money collected will be evenly distributed amongst the two organizations’ philanthropy: Sigma Kappa’s philanthropy is Alzheimer’s Association and Phi Mu Delta’s philanthropy is St. Jude’s Hospital.
With ticket prices ranging from $5 in advance and $7 at the door, the overall money raised is expected to be in the thousands, much like it has in years past, yet an exact amount raised will not be known until a later date. Additionally, to show unity among the two organizations, many members of both Sigma Kappa and Phi Mu Delta ordered matching “Fall Fest” shirts to wear to the event.
The events and activities available at Fall Fest could best be described as “typical fall activities,” with pumpkin painting, lawn games and more. The staple of the event, however, is the petting zoo. Guests could not only pet the animals and snap a few pictures, but also feed the animals.
The animals that were in attendance were an assortment from Ashburn’s Animal Farm outside of Selinsgrove. There was an alpaca, several goats, cows and a miniature horse. During the event, visitors and members of the organizations involved were able to hold the smaller animals with help from the supervisor from Ashburn’s.
Senior Sigma Kappa member and member of the Sigma Kappa philanthropy committee Colleen Schoch had only good things to say.
Schoch said: “Fall Fest is another one of those great opportunities for Greek and non-Greek members to get together and enjoy a stress-free Saturday morning activity. Particularly with midterms coming up, Fall Fest a chance for everyone to come out, enjoy some food, and enjoy the day. This is our philanthropy event for the fall, and we want to raise as much money as possible to donate, as well as have fun doing it.”
Another popular aspect of the event was the outdoor cooking. The organizations offered free hotdogs and hamburgers at the event as well as apple cider to get in the spirit of fall. Many younger kids came with their families to enjoy the petting zoo, and get their faces painted with various fall themed colors.
The success of the event was attributed to careful planning by members of each organization, as well as the enthusiasm of the event-goers whom look forward to going to fall fest year after year.
Junior Megan Annecchiarico, also from Sigma Kappa, said: “I loved seeing such a great turn out from our community on a fun day to support both Alzheimer’s research and St Jude.” The event supports the Ashburn organization as they offer volunteer opportunities to organizations on cam-pus, including the Greek organizations hosting “Fall Fest.”
