Harry’s coffeehouse would normally be the perfect place to study or catch up with a friend, but not last Tuesday night during the Pi Kappa Phi date auction. Every chair was filled and empty space on the floor provided seating for girls eager to bid on the 17 brothers of the fraternity up for auction. Bids ranged from $100 to $1,130.
Clay Hubbard, a sophomore undeclared major, was auctioned to Zeta Tau Alpha for $690.
“[Zeta] is going to be sorely disappointed at the quality of the date. I’m certainly not worth that much,” Hubbard said.
John Hunsicker and Vaughn McCrary, both sophomore biology majors, were auctioned off to Zeta for $1,130, the highest amount raised during one bidding war.
“It was like a buy one get one free deal and I was the get one free,” McCrary said.
Overall, $6,160 was raised during the date auction.
War of the Roses was full of various events that served not only as opportunities to raise money but also as a way for the different groups of Samford women to gain points in hopes of winning the War of the Roses trophy. Points were awarded through a kickball tournament, the date auction, a skit competition, T-shirt sales, banner creation and participation in the penny wars.
“We try to keep to one event a day and make events where everyone can participate,” said Nathan Pearman, head of the War of the Roses production.
This year’s War of the Roses presented a few changes and updates to the schedule. Last year the sporting tournament was flag football, but kickball was the new sport this year. Chi Omega won the tournament game on Monday night against Phi Mu.
“It felt great [to win], especially because a few of the new members played and I could see the excitement on their faces as they knew they were a part of something cool for Chi O as a whole,” said Kendall McPheeters, a sophomore biology major.
Wednesday night included the empathy dinner highlighting United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Birmingham, a private organization that provides programs for disabled infants, children and adults. Those who participated in the dinner were assigned a disability to experience during the evening.
The final event was the awards ceremony in Ben Brown Plaza with live music and entertainment. During the ceremony, The War of the Roses trophy was given to Zeta Tau Alpha. In its third year, Pi Kappa Phi raised more than $11,000 during the War of the Roses. Fifty percent of the funds will go to Pi Kappa Phi’s philanthropy Push America, a nonprofit organization that serves those with disabilities. Twenty percent will be given to Zeta Tau Alpha’s philanthropy, Breast Cancer Education and Awareness, and 20 percent to UCP Birmingham. The final 10 percent will go to the American Cancer Association to promote Breast Cancer Awareness, a new addition to the list of donations.
“It’s going to be cool to see that we can actually make an impact as a small school and small chapter,” Hunsicker said. “We can still make an impact for our philanthropy.”
This article originally appeared in The Samford Crimson.