PHILANTHROPY 

One of the greatest parts of being a Theta Chi is our organization’s commitment to philanthropy.  This rings especially true for Sigma Chapter at OSU. We take pride in the philanthropic events we hold each semester, all while making a commitment to support as many other chapter’s philanthropies as we can.

Philanthropy: What exactly is it?

One often gets confused on what exactly philanthropy is or means.  By one definition in Webster’s dictionary, philanthropy is “usually manifested by donations of money, property, or work to needy person.”  In simpler terms, philanthropy is the act of donating something you have to someone who is in need.  Theta Chi has at least one event per semester in which we hold an event to raise money for a non-profit organization.  Our goal is to use our own resources and creativity to truly help those who are in need of a “Helping Hand.” All brothers of Theta Chi live by our Fraternity’s motto “The Helping Hand.”  By becoming a member of our organization, members pledge to always help out those who are in need. Whether this is another brother, or someone we have never met before, Theta Chi takes pride in our willingness to assist all those who seek it.

Community Service vs. Philanthropy

Often, members of the Greek community fail to distinguish what differentiates community service and philanthropy.  Community Service is active participation in an event geared towards helping your community.  Some simple examples would be picking up trash in a park, building a shed, or serving food at a shelter.  In contrast, philanthropy normally involves giving some sort of gift or donation towards a cause, with a fun event that is put on to raise the money. For us we host the annual GI Theta Chi which is a three day long philanthropy, with different events each day. Pie A Theta Chi is always a popular event during this time. The other events have varied, but have consisted of letter writing to troops overseas, the classic GI Jane photo competition, the Charity Miles App competition, and an obstacle course. During the week, all the sororities participate trying to win events for points, as well as raise the most money. The proceeds go towards the USO, which is an organization that provides aid to troops overseas and their families back home. Overall the idea is to get more Greek Life engagement and participation to raise money for a good cause, all while having fun.

Theta Chi Community Service Expectations

Aside from participating in our philanthropy as well as the philanthropies of other houses, every member in our house is required to participate in at least 10 hours of community service every term.