Zeta Tau Alpha sorority hosted events every day the first week in October to celebrate “Think Pink” week; all funds raised from the events will go to breast cancer education and awareness.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. One in eight women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. “Think Pink” is the term the Zeta Tau Alpha Fraternity uses to represent the overall theme for their breast cancer education and awareness efforts. 

This year, the Zeta Omicron Chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha at Arkansas State hosted at least one event a day for the first week of October to raise money for their philanthropy. Mackenzie Pitts, vice president of philanthropy and service for Zeta, said she has worked on this week’s events since the summer.

“I think one of my goals in this position was to create more engagement, not just within Greek life, but the campus community as a whole. As much as our intention is to fundraise for our philanthropy, advocacy and awareness is just as significant as a dollar,” Pitts, a junior strategic communications major from West Memphis, Arkansas, said. “I wanted to at least leave this week knowing that maybe a few more students knew what ‘Thinking Pink’ actually stood for and meant.”

On Monday, the first event held was “Pie a Zeta,” where attendees were able to buy a pie and throw it at a Zeta member. That night, they also hosted a members-only phonathon to raise money. 

“Call for a Cure,”  a fundraising bingo night, challenged the newest members of Zeta to call different friends, family members, local businesses and campus groups to donate money to their personal donation links and earn prizes. That night alone they were able to raise over $8,000. 

This year marked the debut of the event “Scoops for a Cure,” hosted at the sorority house. Zeta members served ice cream sundaes to anyone who purchased a ticket. Olivia Watson said she attended the event not only because a Zeta friend asked her to, but because it’s a cause that holds meaning to her.

“It’s for breast cancer awareness. We actually both used to work for a woman who had breast cancer like a long time ago. She had it, and then my half-sister’s mom actually passed away from breast cancer,” Watson, a junior psychology major from Wynne, Arkansas, said.

The “Pinkalicious Bake Sale,” held on the lawn in front of the Humanities and Social Sciences building, sold between 100 and 150 baked goods in just 26 minutes.

Zeta also brought back an event they have not held for the last few years, a men’s pageant. “King of the Crown”  is a tradition for many Zeta chapters across the nation. The pageant is made up of six men from different fraternities on campus. Judges score participants to decide the winner based on their formal wear, on-stage interview, and talent portion of the pageant. Participating in the pageant also helps the participants earn points for their fraternity during the philanthropy week. 

Luke Bishop, a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity, won the title of King of the Crown. He performed a dance to “Jingle Bell Rock,” similar to the one in the movie “Mean Girls,” complete with a red bra, red shorts and a Santa hat. 

“Overall, it was a little embarrassing, but everyone got a good laugh as I danced, and I also got the opportunity to help raise money for breast cancer awareness, so it was pretty worth it,” Bishop, a first-year business administration major from Trumann, Arkansas, said. “There is no downside to supporting or donating to an organization that is trying to help.”

The week ended with “Pink out at the Pines,” where Zeta asked the community to wear Pink to the Pines and to the football game on Saturday. 

By the end of the week, Zeta raised more than $12,000. The funds will go directly to the Zeta Tau Alpha Foundation and be distributed to various organizations that support breast cancer research, education and awareness.

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