Over the Halloween weekend, UT students came together in the Music Room of Plant Hall to aid the fight against breast cancer. The Sigma Beta chapter of Sigma Lambda Gamma hosted their first Pink Tie Affair on Friday, Oct. 28 at 6:30 p.m. to show their support for a world without breast cancer.
“I’m really happy about how the Pink Tie Affair has turned out. It’s all been new territory for us and I was really nervous about it since it was our first. I’ll be graduating in December and I have been waiting for this day to come ever since I first joined the chapter in 2008,” said senior Christina Maneria, who was in charge of organizing the event.
Tickets were $7 per person, which included admission into the charity banquet, a buffet prepared by Sodexo, music performed by UT’s own Phi Mu Alpha Music Fraternity, another performance by DeeJay Young and three hours of community service which was approved by P.E.A.C.E.
The Pink Tie Affair was a sold-out hit. Faculty, students and parents attended the semi-formal charity banquet where they enjoyed an evening of food, dance and socializing. On the day of the event, people were calling to buy more tickets, but they were put on a waiting list due to the size of the room and amount of food.
Each table was set up with a centerpiece filled with red, white and pink flowers to honor breast cancer awareness. The buffet was set up in the back of the Music Hall while the entertainers were set up on the stage at the front of the room.
All the tables were filled with smiling guests who chatted and socialized the night away while DJ Special Ed provided background music in between performances.
Sorority President Laura Colman was pleased with the turnout. “I didn’t expect the event to sell out, but now that it has, next year we are definitely going to have another one. The chapter wants to make it an annual event.”
According to sophomore Italia Woodson, they began planning the event two months in advance. From contacting the DJs to receiving funding from Student Government, the Gammas had a lot of work cut out for them.
The Pink Tie Affair did not only portray Sigma Lambda Gamma’s principles, but it also showed their philanthropy. This was very special event for them, as they try to incorporate breast cancer awareness into everything they do because so many of their families and others have been affected by this disease.
In addition, the multi-cultural sorority held a raffle at the event with prizes ranging from Best Buy to a local downtown café gift cards to hair salon gift certificates. Raffle tickets were only $1 per piece. All proceeds were donated to their charity of choice, the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
As for the actual Pink Tie Affair, the night kicked off with Phi Mu Alpha singing an array of songs from Michael Bublé to Gene Chandler’s “Duke of Earl.” Towards the middle of the night, the entire Phi Mu Alpha fraternity circled around Woodson and serenaded her.
“My favorite part of the night was definitely when Phi Mu serenaded me. It made my night, ” Woodson said.
When asked about how the fraternity was asked to perform, Woodson replied, “Originally we planned on having a social with Phi Mu Alpha; however, the social turned into working with each other on the Pink Tie Affair.” The sorority hopes to work with Phi Mu Alpha next year on their second annual Pink Tie Affair.
For more information about the Pink Tie Affair or to make a donation, contact the president of Sigma Lambda Gamma, Laura Colman, at 941-447-2177 or lcolman@spartans.ut.edu. You can also visit their website, http://utgammas.net.
For more information about the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and how you can make a difference, visit ww5.komen.org.
Stef Crocco can be reached at stefcrocs@yahoo.com.