The UR chapter of the coed fraternity Alpha Phi Omega completed approximately 350 hours of service last semester, and approximately 500 hours in the preceding semester.
“This semester, we have already completed 300 hours, and will most likely surpass both of these,” Vice President of Service of AFW and junior Candy Curran said.
Community service is the group’s primary focus, engaging in service projects for the benefit of the community and the campus. AFW also works with many other charitable organizations.
Currently, AFW is selling condom-grams, an April Fools’ parody of Valentine’s Day cards, under the slogan “Fool Around on April Fools’ Day.”
AFW also participated in a Rochester-area telethon in the beginning of March to raise money for the Lollipop Farms Humane Society.
“I think that the telethon party was a huge success, considering this is the first time we’ve done something like this,” said Curran.
Junior and AFW brother Suzanne Decker feels that people join AFW in order to participate in service.
“I think most people join because they’re looking for a group of people who are interested in making a difference,” she said. “Throughout the projects we’ve done, the enthusiasm level is pretty high.”
While community service is the main focus of AFW, it is not the only one. The fraternity puts together social events for their members as well.
“We do community service together, but at the same time it’s a brotherhood and we’re all friends. We have fun together as well,” said freshman Eric Brown, spring semester rush chair and AFW brother. “It’s nice because it’s more diverse than other fraternities or sororities would be.”
“We get a variety of service ? we do projects on a regular basis, but we also do one-time events,” Curran said.
“On average, AFW organizes one service project a week,” said Brown.
AFW regularly works with such organizations as the Boy and Girl Scouts of America, the Sojourner House, a local shelter for women in crisis and their children, and Foodlink, a non-profit food bank that redistributes food donations to those in need.
Among other service projects coming up, AFW will have walkers in the Multiple Sclerosis Walkathon on April 7. They will host the annual Ugly Man on Campus contest on D-Day, in which those who give a donation can cast a vote for the ugliest picture of a student and for the charity that goes along with it.
“Most brothers do at least that, or maybe a little over,” said junior and AFW president Ashley Edwards. “You [can] pick and choose the projects which you think are fun, but you still have a certain number of hours to complete.”
Last semester, in cooperation with the Tiernan Project, they helped put together a haunted house event for Rochester-area kids. The pledge class is required to come up with a service project every semester.
Uzilov can be reached at auzilov@campustimes.org.
