Update, update!!!! (No excuses! C'mon!!!) :p

i've really been enjoying your thread-especially the comments about the phil. crafts. i bet there are a lot of pnms who feel the same way about having to do a craft(and sorority members too, for that matter). i have heard new members admit that they were so worried that the sororities would critique their craft after they left the party-that had never dawned on me before they said it.

please come back and finish your story.

I would agree that there are probably a lot of PNMs that probably aren't crazy about the crafts that are done for philanthropy projects. I can remember one year, it was decided to do a Panhellenic wide project and the project were randomly assigned to the chapters. I think it was for the Boys and Girls Club in town. I imagine coming up with 14 different projects had to be difficult. My chapter was assigned to decorate pencils with the PNMs - not that fun or exciting for anyone involved.

LOL, one PNM I sat with during our philanthropy party decorated part of her craft with a color combination that was another sorority's colors. Apparently another PNM out of my earshot told her that these were another sorority's colors, and the next thing I knew the PNM was furiously redoing her craft. I couldn't figure out why for the life of me, but she just kept saying "No, I screwed it up, I have to do it again." She ended up becoming one of our new members, and she later confided to me that she was worried we'd cut her for putting another sorority's colors on the gift bag. The funny things the PNMs stress about! ;) It's really not easy sometimes to look at those things rationally, though, when you're a crazy-stressed PNM!

We didn't do those back in my day. Does everyone do them? I don't remember dd talking about doing them at UNL? :confused:

Many schools do these indiv. type projects but some schools do group projects. For example, on Tuesday morning, all the PNMs board buses and go to Goodwill and sort items. That afternoon they go to the chapter's philanthropy parties but they'll talk about it instead of doing something.

I was recruitment chair the first year that Elon did a "craft" philanthropy round. We made pillow cases for the kids at Duke Children's Cancer Hospital with paint pens. It ended up being a huge mess and a real pain!!!

However, I will say that we looked very cute in AXiD's Green Choose Children shirts. No other org had specific shirts designed by their nationals for their philanthropy.

I think philanthropy days started in the late 1990s- when I was in school 92-96, we didn't have them but I remember starting to hearing about them a couple years later. We had an openhouse round, talking round, skit round, and preference round. I think the philoanthropy round replaced the talking round. In theory it sounds like a good idea, but some of the crafts seem kind of cheesy.

It was hard to come up with a craft where you could be engaged in conversation and make something in under 20 minutes.

The first year we did it, we made the whole room into a kids theme (like hand print cut outs, teddy bears and pics of all the sisters as kids -- which was really adorable!) we had the PNM's come in to a song we obvi changed the words to, and then had our philanthropy chair explain what Choose Children is and then showed a brief computerized slide show of some of the different events that we did and read some letters from the girls in the brownie troop we sponsored. Then it was time to make the craft and then clean up.

Of course that was the first year that Elon had philanthropy round and I am sure a lot of the kinks have been knocked out since, but it was brutal to get cleaned up and set up between each party!!!

Oh, and one of the PNMs at one of our parties had a paint pen explode all over her -- and she was wearing white!!! It was not a good scene!

I'm sorry in advanced at how cynical this may sound, but at a really big recruitment, you kind of have to wonder what the philanthropy group is really going to do with 1000 pillowcases (or painted flowerpots, I'm not trying to single any one craft out, and maybe they can use 1000 pillowcases) all at once. It really is hard to figure out how 18 groups could have everyone make a meaningful craft, you know?

I think having a day to focus on the groups' philanthropies is a great idea, but that maybe it should focus more of videos, scrapbooks and photos of the projects that the group, particularly in support of their national group's philanthropy, really does throughout the year. That way the benefits keep coming because group may be inspired to actually do more or more substantial projects, and it can be a focus for the sisterhood. It could also get big to have pictures of your members working on other groups philanthropies, building up pahellenic spirit.

Again, with the cynicism, but I sort of feel like this was a "what-can-we-do-to-change-the-image-of-sororities" idea rather than an authentically well thought out philanthropic idea.

I totally agree, and as someone whose art skills would need assistance to get up to suck hard, it places another pressure on the PNMs and sisters who aren't inclined to that sort of thing. Not to mention the wanting to look nice because you're rushing, but being afraid to wear TOO nice of clothes because of the glue/paint etc you may be using. Not to mention that not everyone has a philanthropy easily translatable to a 15 minute craft.

I think it would be much better for everyone to get together before or after rush and build a Habitat for Humanity house or something along those lines.

You know, what little I remember of my rush, I do remember making a "magic wand" for the Robbie Page Memorial, and a quilt square for ASA...and sadly, I don't even remember what happened to that quilt square. But I can't imagine what you would do for Alzheimers(sp?) or Make-A-Wish...just picking a few...

Imagine Juvenile Diabetes which was our focus when I was in school. Decorative insulin pumps maybe? Personalized insulin syringes? (I apologize for being in bad taste; I'm sure there are helpful things that could be made, but it doesn't immediately seem to lend itself to crafts.)

Or Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation officially. Here's the mission statement: "The Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation impacts and enriches our communities by providing essential support for education, philanthropy and leadership." It's pretty wide open. You could do school supplies that you then donated; there are lots of possibilities.


ETA: Here is an excellent video prevention on our website. It's a wonderful overview of our foundation: http://www.alphagammadelta.org/conte...efault.htm.htm