The sorority Alpha Epsilon Phi will be hosting its first ever Phi Fair on Nov. 15 from 8 p.m. to 12 a.m on the University of Arizona Mall. The fair will have a number of games, food and events planned for people across campus to attend. All the proceeds will go towards Sharsheret, an organization dedicated to breast and ovarian cancer research and awareness.
“I wanted to do something more interactive than just a food event, so we will be handing out food as well as doing some activities to get people involved,” said Emily Morris, the sorority’s vice president of philanthropy.
RELATED: Sorority president spends time lobbying in Washington D.C.
Morris is the person behind the idea. She said she came up with the idea scrolling through Pinterest one day. Morris liked the idea of mixing food and activities together for an event.
Morris has also organized other events that have happened in the recent past, including Flapjacks and Phis and a Cookies and Cocoa event. This is the first fair event the sorority has ever done. Morris runs community service, planning the main two events of the year and is a liaison for other sorority events.
Morris said she chose to run for her position because she felt she fit the part and loves community service.
“I thought, what better way to get involved in my sorority than to do something that I already enjoy doing,” Morris said.
The sorority has been planning this event for months, and now that it is coming up, the sorority is excited to see how others will react to it.
“It’s been a lot of work, but it’s been a lot of rewarding work,” Morris said. “I’ve enjoyed realizing the impact that one person can make on other people.”
The Phi Fair will include a range of fun activities for participants to enjoy. Community service assistant Samantha Camblin is most excited for the human hamster ball racetrack and is even considering buying a ticket to do it herself.
This event will consist of people getting into big inflatable plastic balls and running around a racetrack. There will also be a dunk tank, a DJ booth and a $3 raffle with surprise prizes. For food, the sorority will have popcorn, nachos and cotton candy.
“We change [the philanthropy events] up every year just to keep them interesting and keep them fun and keep more people involved and excited to see what is coming next,” Camblin said.
Camblin is looking forward to the new events that AEPhi will be planning in the future.
“I love the organization myself. It really hits home with me,” Camblin said. “My grandma died of breast cancer, and it hits home with a lot of people, so we get behind and support it.”
Camblin said her grandmother died of breast cancer the year her parents got married and her mother has been an advocate for breast cancer research ever since. AEPhi supporting Sharsheret was what attracted her to the sorority at first. Now she plans to continue getting more involved with the philanthropy events in the future.
Camblin said she believes the cause will help combat the belief that Greek Life is just about partying and superficiality. She said she believes that people will be able to see the good philanthropic work that comes out of Greek Life and that it will represent the benefits to having Greek Life on campus.
“Not everyone parties and not everyone is into that stuff,” Camblin said. “This is really about raising money for a good cause and not necessarily the whole other side of what people think Greek Life is with the parties. It’s a good, wholesome, family event.”
Follow Lauren Bookwalter on Twitter
