Phi Psi News
Stanford Chapter Helps Fight Hunger
The men of the California Beta Chapter of Phi Kappa Psi (Stanford) didn't just want to host a Phi Psi 500. They wanted to host the right Phi Psi 500. A year of service culminated on Sunday, May 2nd as Calif. Beta organized the highly successful Taste of Palo Alto. Partnering with the women of Alpha Epsilon Phi and the Stanford Project On Hunger, the goal was to raise as much money for the Ecumenical Hunger Program (EHP), which provides food and essentials for low-income families in the Bay Area.
Eight area restaurants partnered with Phi Psi to donate delicious items for taste. In total, over 7,000 food tickets were sold, and a perfect day of weather allowed guests to sample the cuisine and take in the sounds of some local music.
At the conclusion of the day, over $3,500 was raised for EHP, far exceeding the expectations of the chapter. Even more importantly, the partnership with EHP was a success on both sides.
"We picked EHP for three reasons," said Ravi Sankar, Calif. Beta's Corresponding Secretary. "One, they seemed very efficient with their use of money. Two, they explicitly are looking for more attention from Stanford students and, three, they seemed thematically appropriate: feed yourself and feed the hungry."
Feed yourself and feed the hungry was such a simple concept that the event sold itself on campus. The chapter conservatively estimates that 350 (possibly as high as 500) people showed up during the four-hour event to help EHP. It was the largest turnout for a charity event that the men of Calif. Beta could remember. The support not only helped to fund the program, but raise its awareness on campus.
"The
event itself was well planned, well attended and helped to shine more light
on EHP," added Melanie Jones-Carter, Program
Administrative Manager for EHP. "We were able to gather names of others that are interested in
volunteering and with [Phi Psi's] help, establish a greater working relationship
with other groups at Stanford.
The money that was raised will certainly keep our mission alive in providing
food, clothing and household essentials to those in need. We hope to
continue our relationship and we can't wait for next year's event."
What started as a brainstormed idea for a weekend philanthropy event has now turned into an annual campaign for our men at Stanford.
For more information on helping out California Beta in their philanthropic work, contact Ravi Sankar. For more information on the EHP, visit them here.
