Gearing up for Gameday 2015

“The glory of life is to give; not be given. To love; not to be love. To serve; not to be served,” said Sarah Ida Shaw, the founder of Tri Delta. Not only did Sarah Ida give the ladies of the Alpha Lambda chapter the opportunity to join Tri Delta, she gives us the opportunity to give, love, and serve the wonderful philanthropy of St. Jude Children’s research hospital.  Our love for St. Jude is overwhelming and will never stop.  The fact that some sick kids will live to see another Christmas, birthday, fourth of July and Halloween keeps our undying love for St. Jude alive. This Saturday November 7^th everyone has the opportunity to give, love and serve for St. Jude. It is Tri Delta’s 5^th annual Gameday! It is a tailgate style party to watch all the college football games. The even includes much more than gamecock football. There is also silent auction, t-shirts (available for purchase), food, and much more, including the live band Home Brewed.  The event will be held at Jake’s on Devine from 12:30 pm to 3:30 pm.  Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to come!

St. Jude is near and dear to all of the members of Alpha Lambda’s heart. They will be out and about around campus spreading the love and the word of this amazing event. Not only will they be spreading the word they will be selling tickets. Each ticket is $10 from a sister or $12 at the door. Something that is a little bit different is that this year a portion of the ticket proceeds will be going to help the South Carolina flood relief. Being affected by the devastating floods in Columbia the sisters of Alpha Lambda not only wanted to raise money for St. Jude but also give back to the community that we are always so welcome in.

Tri Delta has been partnered with St. Jude since 1999. Subsequently as years went on, the partnership grew and grew. Tri Delta has made the biggest pledge to St. Jude. We pledged to raise $60 million in 10 years for Tri Delta Place. Tri Delta Place is short term housing for patients and their families to stay when they first arrive at the hospital located in Memphis, Tennessee. Our last goal was to raise $15 million in 5 years but because of all the hard work  and dedication of Tri Deltas from all over the country and Canada we met that goal of $15 million in just 3.5 years. “The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of our founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion or a family's ability to pay,” according to StJude.org.  A patient from St. Jude never sees a bill, ever. St. Jude takes the toughest and it is where the doctors send their toughest cases. Why? Because St. Jude has the world’s best survival rates for the most aggressive forms of childhood cancer. The last thing parents need to worry about is paying for their child’s medical care when they are that sick. This is why Tri Delta Place is there and this is why Tri Deltas strive every day to spread the love and awareness of this outstanding place.

Gameday is one of the many ways that this mission is possible. Last year this event raised an outstanding amount of money and this year we are hoping to surpass that.  Sisters have been working tirelessly to make this event happen. Philanthropy chairman Sarah Walker particularly has been working night and day to make sure that the 5^th annual Gameday is nothing short of fantastic. Tuesday on campus, Walker and a few fellow sisters were out on Greene Street in front of the Russell House on campus spreading the word about the event. Rain or shine the sisters of Alpha Lambda are making sure that fellow Gamecocks are aware of the event and our undying love and overwhelming support for St. Jude.

Wearing these letters means more than being a Tri Delta. Wearing these letters mean that you are making a difference for a sick child. It means you have made a commitment to St. Jude and everything they stand for. “Us, Tri Deltas will not stop dedicating our support to St. Jude until no child dies from cancer. Because, loving Tri Delta means that you love St. Jude and its mission,” said Walker. Danny Thomas, the founder always said “no child should die in the dawn of life” and wearing these letters mean that we agree with him and will fight to make sure that never happens.

Saturday come out to Jake’s on Devine to help the Tri Delta sisters share the love for St. Jude. Food, football and fun, what more could anyone want on a Saturday? We are looking forward to seeing everyone out there from 12:30-3:30 wearing black and garnet! As some of the members of Alpha Lambda say do it for the kiddos!

-Tess Bray