Alpha Omicron Pi Strike Out
Club & Greek

Alpha Omicron Pi ‘Strikes Out’ Arthritis

Even with three strikes, you’re still winning! The Alpha Omicron Pi sorority hosted a whiffle ball tournament to ‘strike out’ arthritis, the organization’s national philanthropy, on Mar. 25.

At noon on the greens in front of Wilson Hall, Alpha Omicron Pi hosted a whiffle ball tournament. The money raised at this event was donated to the Arthritis Foundation, which is the sorority’s philanthropy.

An estimated 75-100 attendees turned out on that Saturday afternoon, in addition to nearly 100 sisters in the organization.

Jessica Hertman, a junior English and secondary education student, is the sorority’s philanthropy chair and was in charge of running the event. “Overall, I think that the event went very well. Multiple different organizations showed up to play whiffle ball games, as well as parents and even some alumni!” Hertman continued, “All of the teams became very involved in the games and it became a big competition which is what makes it so fun.”

“I had a good time playing whiffle ball with my friends,” said senior accounting student and Alpha Kappa Psi member Angelo Adamo. “I played three games; there were about seven people on my team. It was fun, and winning was an added bonus,” Adamo joked. This was the second Strike Out event that he had attended.

Not only did members of Greek organizations attend the event, but other Monmouth students came together to support this cause as well. Junior business marketing student Mike Coury, for example, came because he thought the event sounded like a good time.

“I really liked that they created a fun, interactive way for all the Greek organizations to come together for the cause,” Coury said. He continued to say that he attends “a fair amount of Greek events” at MU because he likes the idea behind philanthropy events; Alpha Omicron Pi’s Strike Out event was no exception.

“I enjoyed seeing the sisters of Alpha Omicron Pi come together to help a great cause,” said senior business management and marketing student Frankie DiGangi. DiGangi headed to the event in the second half of the day to catch the championships and said that it seemed like the players were having fun, no matter which organization they were in.

DiGangi was not alone in this thought. Sophomore communication student and Alpha Omicron Pi member, Gina Priore, agreed that her favorite part of the event was the “Greek unity” amongst participants and observers. “I think that this event shows true Greek unity. There’s a bunch of different organizations here that come together to help one cause, and that’s really great,” Priore said.

Admissions Counselor and Alpha Omicron Pi alumnus of the chapter, Kristin Waring, said, “It is a really great fundraiser for a really great cause and everybody has a good time.”

The organization was able to raise a notable amount of money after this event was over. Hertman later added that the sorority donated over $1,000 to the Arthritis Foundation between funds raised from Strike Out and a previous event, Pie and A-O-II. This event occurred earlier in the week and allowed people to purchase a ‘pie’ of whipped cream for $2 a piece and pie a sister in the face.

“I had a lot of fun,” said senior marketing student Cassie Stiansen. “This was my third Strike Out event since I joined the sorority and I still love going to it. It’s for a great cause, and I love giving back to this foundation.”

Stiansen continued to share that her favorite part of the event is watching the games and seeing how much fun the crowd has. Jokingly, she added that the amount of people who bring their dogs are also a fun part of the day.

The event is held annually by this organization each spring semester. The group was not the first to hold this event out of all of the Alpha Omicron Pi chapters, as it is the common fundraising event that the sorority hosts nation wide.

For next year, Hertman suggested that the new philanthropy chair to book the date of the event for later in the semester, “so that the weather is warmer,” she said.

Hertman continued, “I also think that the event should be promoted more overall on campus. I would love to improve the role of sisters during the event as well.”

PHOTO TAKEN by Courtney Buell