Alpha Phi sorority holds soccer tournament to raise money for women’s heart health
Nicole Etchemendy
Argonaut
Alpha Phi sorority’s philanthropy last weekend was about more than just raising money for a foundation — it was about supporting women within the house who have been impacted by heart disease.
Alpha Phi led a soccer tournament, called “Alpha Phifa.” The proceeds from the event went toward the Alpha Phi Foundation, which strives to advance the technology and awareness of women’s heart health, said Sierra Pontius, president of Alpha Phi.
“I actually love this event, just because I played soccer growing up and into high school, and sports are always a great way where people can come together and bond over one mutual thing,” Pontius said. “Alpha Phifa is great, because one of the ways you can actually prevent heart disease is to get 60 minutes of exercise every single day.”
This charity’s platform is close to home for some of the women in Alpha Phi, as there are several girls within the house that have suffered from or are currently suffering from a heart disease or defect.
Junior Sarah Medina, a member of Alpha Phi, was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome her freshman year of college. She said she underwent surgery last spring and the illness is currently under control.
“Having the support was the biggest thing,” Medina said. “It was insane, if I wasn’t an aphi I probably wouldn’t have stayed in school.”
Medina said she has undergone two heart surgeries and received immense amounts of support from her sisters throughout the process.
“It makes me more excited to do (the philanthropy),” Medina said. “It’s always been something that was cool, but now that it has affected me so much, all the girls were willing to help me out.”
Junior Aly Wilson, philanthropy chair for Alpha Phi, planned the entire event, from forming the brackets to passing out information about the charity and organizing the shirts. Wilson said they have been planning for this event since the end of last year’s tournament.
Throughout the day, many teams competed to claim the winning spot for their bracket, each house had a shirt designed for them, and the proceeds from the shirt sales went to the Alpha Phi Foundation, Wilson said.
A freshman and sophomore were assigned to coach each team while junior and senior members of Alpha Phi refereed the games. Delta Tau Delta fraternity won the men’s bracket for the day and Delta Gamma sorority won the women’s bracket.
Wilson said the start of fall is a great atmosphere for a philanthropy like Alpha Phifa, because more people are excited to give back to something bigger.
“At the beginning of the year, I feel like more people are ready for philanthropies because they aren’t burnt out yet, everyone’s eager to take part in new things that are starting,” Wilson said.
Nicole Etchemendy
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