Phi Mu Eta Xi, our newest Panhellenic sorority at California State University Stanislaus (Stan State), has successfully hosted their first large philanthropic event, Warrior-a-Thon. This first annual dance marathon was held on Apr. 16 at the Amphitheatre.
The sorority thought it was a great idea to host something new on campus, all while supporting a great cause.
Phi Mu Eta Xi philanthropy chairman Stephanie Garcia (senior, Spanish) was in charge of planning and executing the dance marathon. Along with her extreme effort, the entire chapter went over and above to make this event fun for participants.
Weeks leading up to the event, Garcia went to other organizations’ meetings and spoke about the event, showing how passionate her sorority is about their philanthropy, Children’s Miracle Network Hospital (CMNH). This particular event was created to raise funds for UC Davis Children’s Hospital, which is close to home for a lot of local families in need.
Phi Mu started out by going door-to-door for donations. Then, they posted their pink flyer everywhere possible and advertised all details on their social media outlets.
“The awareness alone of this event is so unique and special. At first people think, ‘Okay, it’s dancing for a really long time and it helps with some charity,’ but this is something that people all around us face each day and it’s people we know that need help whether it’s treatment, medication or medical bills,” Garcia said.
The Warrior-a-Thon was not only the first one to be held at Stan State, but was also the first Phi Mu chapter in California to host a dance marathon to benefit a cause.
All participants were required to register before Apr. 13, with a fee of $15 that covered their t-shirt and food. Those who were not able to pay by the deadline paid $20 at the door.
The event went from 12 to 6 p.m. and the money that was raised was revealed at the very end. Phi Mu successfully raised exactly $5,846.76 for UC Davis Children’s Hospital.
After the event was over, Garcia explained how excited she and her fellow sisters were with the outcome.
“The best part was seeing everyone enjoying themselves and really taking part in the event. The total reveal and everyone’s reaction was the best part as well,” Garcia said.
Along with being the designated leader for the event, Garcia had a separate committee of eight other sisters, as well as other executive positions to help her out. This event truly shows the main focus for our Panhellenic sororities on campus, which is to benefit a cause bigger than the organization itself.
The Phi Mu Vice President Ashley Ferko (junior, Criminal Justice) joined this sorority as a founding member during Spring 2014 and explains that this event has been in the making for a while.
“Dance Marathon is something we’ve been talking about for a little over a year, now. Watching it from a possibility to the actual event was amazing. Whenever we do events like this, that have such a positive effect on the community, I remember why I originally wanted to join this organization,” Ferko said.
The atmosphere of the event was full of energy, and every sister – with a smile on their face – got involved, whether they were working at a booth or dancing as a participant.
Taylor Bettencourt (sophomore, Anthropology) was a participant from another sorority on campus, Phi Sigma Sigma, and expressed her thoughts on Phi Mu’s event.
“Phi Mu did an amazing job keeping everyone pumped up and dancing. My favorite part was having the professional dancers come out to teach us hip-hop, salsa and bachata,” Bettencourt said.
Through the support of the campus, community and other organizations, Phi Mu has successfully started a movement for years to come.
For more updates on Phi Mu Eta Xi, follow their Instagram account, or visit their web page.