With more than $8,000 raised last year and a ranking as one of the top 10 highest fundraising chapters by its nationals, Arizona’s Delta Delta Delta sorority looked to raise even more funds at its semi-annual charity event Friday night.
The event, Delta House of Pancakes or “DHOP,” is a philanthropic event the sorority holds once a semester. Students and community members can pay a $5 entrance fee to receive an endless amount of pancakes. The event attracts hundreds of hungry students each semester and raised $3,972 this time around. All of these funds will go to the sorority’s philanthropy, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
The event ran from from 11 p.m. until 3 a.m. and had a constant flow of students coming in and out of the sorority house, located on 1541 E. Second St. As Delta Delta Delta’s biggest philanthropy event, the planning process is “extremely intense and crazy,” according to Chula Robertson, the sorority’s philanthropy co-chair.
“We reach out to the local community, Tri Delta alumnae, sisters, friends and family to get everything we use donated,” Robertson said, adding that members in the sorority strive to make the event fun and safe for all members of the community.
For some students, Delta House of Pancakes is one of the most beloved events on the UA campus.
“There is nothing more that I love than eating so many pancakes where the girls of Tri Delta were smiling,” said Garrett Voge, a junior studying accounting and management information systems. Voge said it felt “amazing” to support the sorority and that its cause has led him to attend the event every semester since he was a freshman.
Andrea Beebe, an elementary education junor, said she enjoyed watching the pancake-eating contests and listening to the DJ at the event.
“Their philanthropy is amazing, and it’s an amazing social event because so many students attend,” Beebe said.
The event raised a lot of support and earned a large amount of money for the hospital, Robertson said. She said she hopes to expand the event in the future by moving it to a bigger side yard outside of the house, which could allow attendees to participate in more activities.
