Greek community debuts Olympics

Splattered with mud, biceps bulging and veins protruding from their necks, two teams engaged in an exhausting competition of tug of war Friday during IU’s first Greek
Olympics.

This weekend, IU’s greek community assembled to partake in the two-day event that began with a competition portion Friday and culminated in a volunteer service project
Saturday.

Fraternities and sororities from different greek councils composed eight teams, each consisting of eight to 12 people.

On Friday, the teams competed in Dunn Meadow in rain, mud and strong wind. They participated in a myriad of events, including tug of war, kickball, a three-legged race and a tube race in which the teams held hands as they transferred an inner tube back-and-forth in a line.

Success in these events was measured with a point system.

“Team Black,” composed of members from Delta Gamma, Lambda Upsilon Lambda and Pi Kappa Alpha, emerged victorious after sustaining its lead the entire weekend.
In addition to allowing the teams to compete, Friday’s events provided a social aspect to the Olympics that allowed members from different councils and organizations to
fraternize.

“We were able to bond socially with people we wouldn’t have known otherwise, potentially establishing new friendships,” said Jose Delgado, member of Team Black and Lambda Upsilon Lambda.

On Saturday, the teams conducted service-projects at various locations, including the Boys and Girls Club, Jordan River clean-up and Middle Way House.

The teams earned points based on how many people attended their respective service projects.

“It’s good to be competitive and build team spirit, but we wanted to emphasize the importance of serving your community,” said senior Kimberly Lucht, president of IU Unify and coordinator of the Greek Olympics.

Team Black organized its service project at Middle Way House, a domestic violence shelter and rape crisis center. With 27 volunteers, the team had the second-highest attendance at its service project.

Volunteers cleaned, painted the interior of the building and did maintenance work.
Debra Morrow, community service coordinator at Middle Way House, expressed her gratitude to students for their labor.

“You have no idea how much this means,” Morrow said. “We have not had the time to clean, and we have not had the time to paint this apartment for one of the families.”
Delgado said he prefers hands-on community service as opposed to philanthropic contributions.

“I like getting my hands dirty,” he said. “Anyone can write a check, but it’s something special when you dedicate your time and energy, and you’re able to see the results right in front of your face.”

Lucht agreed volunteering time means more than donating money.

“There’s a big difference between serving 10 hours and writing a check for $10,” Lucht said. “When we go out into the community as IU students and as greek students and show our faces and show how much we care, they get a better idea of who we are.”

The greek community should bear the responsibility of serving the community, she said.

“A lot of these volunteer organizations want to see the IU campus get involved in Bloomington,” Lucht said. “There is so much we can do. There are so many places that need help.”

Lucht said having a service project as a key component in the Greek Olympics gave IU Unify the opportunity to highlight the initiatives of some local organizations in need of assistance.

“A lot of people got to contribute to service-oriented projects at volunteer organizations many of these students didn’t know existed,” Lucht said.

The second day of the event drew 108 IU students to volunteer throughout the Bloomington area.

IU Unify, an organization that works to unify the greek community, helped organize the Greek Olympics.

“The idea of IU Unify is for cross-collaboration across all IU greek councils and organizations,” Lucht said.

She said Greek Olympics was an opportunity to bring the greek and IU student community together on a bigger scale than ever done before.

The winning team will select a volunteer organization that IU Unify will sponsor next year. However, Lucht said there were no winners and losers in the competition.

“It wasn’t necessarily about winning,” she said. “None of that mattered. It mattered that chapters came together, interacted and cross-collaborated to bond with new people and have a positive impact on society.”

IU Unify plans to make the Greek Olympics an annual event.

“We’re already planning for next year,” Lucht said. “We’re going to do this event yearly.”