Lambda Chi Alpha, others seesaw 36 hours for charity

Saturday’s rainy, cold weather wasn’t ideal for playground fun, but members of Lambda Chi Alpha rode a giant teeter-totter all day to raise money for the local organization Christian Help Inc., which offers assistance to homeless people in Johnson County.

Members of both Pi Beta Phi and Zeta Tau Alpha helped out with the event by taking turns riding seesaw as well.

Freshman Courtney Lawrie and sophomore Shaylynn Skene, both of Pi Beta Phi, spent the noon hour Saturday trying to stay warm with hot beverages while on the teeter-totter outside of the Walgreens on U.S. 31.

Lawrie said she still waved to the traffic on the highway showing enthusiasm for the event even though it turned into a dreary day.

Though Skene said she was not waving to cars as the midday traffic stopped and started at the nearby intersection, she said she was still having fun.

Skene said she was helping out to support the fraternity especially since they helped out with her sorority’s Lips for Literacy, a popular campus event that raised $1,000 two weeks ago. She also suggested that the bad conditions encouraged donations because it showed the dedication of everyone involved in the fundraiser.

Though both were dressed for the cold weather, Skene and Lawrie said they would have volunteered for more than their one-hour shift if they were needed.

The 36-hour annual marathon began Friday under blue skies on Dame Mall before it was moved to near the baseball field because of a Franklin home game and then to Walgreens.

If someone wanted to ride the teeter-totter outside of the fraternity and two sororities, they had to sign a wavier.

Lambda Chi Alpha High Theta Rick Brennan, who serves as the philanthropy chair and vice president external said the move to the baseball game was suggested by some of the players on the team. He said the move was beneficial.

"Around that time there weren’t any classes going on, and we weren’t getting much action on Dame Mall so we went over there and it worked out real well," Brennan said.

Friday night Brennan stayed at Walgreens until 2:30 a.m. and said the donations were still coming in.

"At 2 o’clock, 2:30, we were still getting donations in, but [being out there for 36 hours] is mostly just for the camaraderie," Brennan said.

Like Skene and Lawrie, the plummeting temperatures of Saturday didn’t faze Brennan.

Brennan said the fundraiser usually brings in $1,500. The total this year came in just under that estimate. Brennan said the donations totaled $1,445, but the fraternity contributed some money as well.

He said the fraternity hoped to give a 2,000 check to Christian Help Inc. on Thursday.

Though the fraternity has another national philanthropy, Brennan said it got involved with Christian Help Inc. last year and decided to do it again this year.

He said the fraternity was happy with the outcome of the marathon.

"Saturday went great, we had some very generous contributions from the community and we were able to exceed our goals," Brennan said.