Fire department, greeks play waterball for charity

More than 100 greek IU students fought both the heat and one another Saturday afternoon at the fifth annual Acacia Waterball Challenge. This year, Zeta Tau Alpha sorority also sponsored the event.\nThe yearly philanthropic project raised more than $2,500 to benefit the Bloomington Fire Department's Shop With a Firefighter program. \n"It's such a good event," said Acacia's philanthropy chair, senior William Shields. "Bloomington Fire Department does so much for the community."\nParticipants paid $10 apiece to play waterball, a game in which two teams of five or six people aim a giant fire hose at a beach ball-size sphere suspended on a wire. Whoever moves the ball to the other team's side first prevails. \nTeams with names like "Shmoogidy" and "Hot wet bunnies" wore red fire helmets, swimsuits and smiles during the competitions in the south parking lot of Memorial Stadium as they were cheered on enthusiastically by their peers. Few remained dry.\n"It gets a little crazy," said junior Alpha Gamma Delta member Christine Bowman. "It's a lot of fun." \nBowman and some of her fellow sorority sisters came out for the event Saturday "to help support a good cause."\nShields said his fraternity made extra efforts this year to advertise for the event and get as many people there as possible. He said a "big marketing campaign" was implemented among other greek houses. Shields and other Acacia members delivered flowers with invitations to play waterball to all the sorority houses and even went as far as making wake-up calls regarding the event Saturday morning. Members also hung signs around campus and painted the bridge on North Jordan Avenue to promote the affair.\nThe hard work was appreciated. Neville Vaughn, vice president of the firefighter's union, said without Acacia's donations, the Shop With a Firefighter program -- which equips underprivileged children with gifts and warm clothes in December -- wouldn't be as effective as it is.\n"We rely on donations," Vaughn said. "People like those in Acacia help make the program successful."\nJunior Celeste Dro, Zeta Tau Alpha's philanthropy chair for the Waterball Challenge, said she was pleased to have been involved with this year's program.\n"We love the men of Acacia and we wanted to support them," she said. "Plus, it was for a great cause."\nThe Waterball Challenge was just the first of many philanthropic endeavors that both Acacia and Zeta Tau Alpha have planned for the school year.\nShields said their next big project, "Turkey Trot," will take place at IU's first home football game Saturday against Nicholls State. \nJunior Zeta Tau Alpha member Mary Beth Kraft said her chapter's next philanthropic venture is the annual Big Man on Campus male talent show, which is set for Oct. 14 at the IU Auditorium.