Members of nine N.C. State PanHellenic Sororities have raised more than $12,000 for a Raleigh-area institution that serves children with special-education needs.
N.C. State’s Delta Epsilon Chapter of Sigma Chi held its 40th annual Derby Days competition this past week. Derby Days is a week-long competition during which members of the nine PanHellenic sororities at N.C. State participate to raise money for the Frankie Lemmon School & Development Center.
“There are over 277 chapters of Sigma Chi throughout the nation,” said Winston Senter, a junior in business administration and Sigma Chi’s philanthropy and Derby Days Chair. “Every year, each chapter hosts a week long philanthropy event. Ours at State is Derby Days.”
Sigma Chi has donated more than $100,000 to the Frankie Lemmon School since it first began the partnership. The Frankie Lemmon School is a center in Raleigh for children with special-education needs. The school provides life-changing education and support that leads to successful participation in family and community life for the children, Senter said. It aims for the achievement of each child’s full potential, according to Senter. The school is located on Glenwood Avenue, and Senter said 70 members of the fraternity volunteer at the school and provide financial aid.
“The week leading up to Derby Days is service week at the Frankie Lemmon School for the fraternity,” Senter said. “My favorite part of the whole thing is being there and seeing the kids. A lot of students have never heard of the school, which is surprising since it is so close to campus. I think that the best part of Derby Days is having these girls realize that this organization exists and that it is close enough for us all to easily help out.”
The actual Derby Days competition consists of five days of competitive events among the nine PanHellenic sororities on N.C. State’s campus. Sororities can earn points for winning different competitions, along with gaining bonus points for attendance and general participation, Senter said. Raleigh-area businesses also participate in Derby Days. El Cerro, a Raleigh-area Mexican restaurant, and Krispy Kreme have helped to sponsor the competition annually.
On Monday, the first day of the competition, students participated in standard field game competitions, including tug-of-war and egg toss. Tuesday, the sororities competed to see who could turn in the most box tops. Sigma Chi collected more than 10,000 box tops through this competition for the Frankie Lemmon School. These box tops were not included in the tally for the total amount of money that Derby Days raised. Other competitions included a banner painting competition, judged by the staff of the Frankie Lemmon School, and a karaoke contest.
“I really enjoy the karaoke competition,” said Olivia Roberson, a sophomore in textile and fashion management and member of Sigma Kappa. “You are there to cheer your chapter on, but it is a nice way to see girls from other sororities. The week is highly competitive, but events such as the karaoke contest serve as some relief from that.”
The final event of the competition was a dance contest held at the McKimmon Center on Sunday. The N.C. Delta Chapter of Pi Beta Phi was victorious this year.
“My favorite event is probably the dance competition,” Senter said. “We have the dance team as well as staff and the president of the Frankie Lemmon School judge the competition, it is a lot of fun to have everyone together. Everyone gets a chance to hear directly from the president of The Frankie Lemmon School at the dance competition. It is a great way to end the week.”
This year’s overall winner of Derby Days was the Iota Phi chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha. The sorority has won the competition the past 14 years they have competed.
“I think everybody looks forward to it all year,” said Meagan Briley, vice president of programming for ZTA. “The whole chapter participates. Everyone knows it is going to be stressful, but it brings the chapter together for one goal and a great cause. It is also genius way to raise a lot of money in a fun way. We get to spend a week doing silly things with friends for a good reason, what more could you ask for.”
