Nebraska Wesleyan University sorority members armed themselves with disinfecting wipes, plastic gloves, and garden shovels on a recent cool Saturday morning in a collective effort to lend a helping hand to campus.
Members of all three Nebraska Wesleyan University sororities — Alpha Gamma Delta, Delta Zeta, and Willard — spent October 29 cleaning offices, wiping down stair banisters, and re-potting plants for winter as part of the first “Greek Lend-A-Hand To Campus Day.”
The idea came about last semester when Nebraska Wesleyan sophomore Gwendolyn Lopez, vice president of philanthropy and community service for Panhellenic Council, organized a group of Greeks to help art professor Lisa Lockman with the annual Bowls For Backpacks project. The group cleaned the ceramics studio, and Lockman was so excited about the help that she mentioned other departments on campus would likely appreciate extra help too. This gave Lopez the idea for Lend-A-Hand To Campus, which she shared with the Panhellenic Council, the governing body of the University’s sororities.
Lopez said the opportunity not only helped the campus but it provided a good lesson for sorority members.
“I hope the participants gained an understanding of how important and fun it is to give back directly to our campus,” said Lopez.
“I think the event went really well,” said senior Kayla Decker. “It was nice for a campus organization like ours to be able to give back. It was such a positive experience.”
The service day also provided an opportunity for sorority members to get to know each other better while working toward a common goal.
“I got to meet and talk to girls from Delta Zeta and Alpha Gamma Delta while getting to know my Willard sisters better,” said first year student Jennifer Heywood. “It was also awesome that we were helping out on campus so we can see the work that we did every day.”
Greek leaders called the first campus service day a success. Now they hope to make it an annual event and expand it to include fraternity members.
“Greeks are often out in the community helping others and I feel that this event shows our campus what we can accomplish and what we're all about,” said Lopez.