A large ball will be rolling across campus this week to collect money for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
The Zeta Beta Tau fraternity at Cal State Long Beach has teamed up with the Children’s Miracle Network to collect donations for the hospital as part of the “Get on the Ball” event. Members of the fraternity are asking students, faculty and anyone else to sign the multi-colored ball.
Zeta Beta Tau kicked off the weeklong philanthropic event at the Southwest Terrace on Monday afternoon.
The fraternity’s philanthropy chairman, Aaron Robinson, spoke before a small crowd and introduced a multitude of guests. Lisa Coleman, assistant director of CMN, also spoke briefly.
“Nothing is too small,” Coleman said. “Think about the impact you’re making. Come down to the hospital and see the impact first-hand.”
CMN is a non-profit organization that raises funds for 170 children’s hospitals across the country. It has also worked with Zeta Beta Tau on a national level since 1992.
CSULB President F. King Alexander was the first to sign the ball. Before the ceremonial signing, he applauded the fraternity’s noble actions, ending with, “Good work, brothers.”
He was followed by a number of other invited guests, who included several deans and Chief of University Police Stanley Skipworth.
Associated Students Inc. President Chris Chavez signed the ball and said that despite the bad reputation sometimes associated with fraternities, performing good deeds are not uncommon for them.
By the time the 20-minute introduction ceremony came to a close, the ball had amassed several dozen signatures, and a small donations jar had already been filled to the top.
Donations will be accepted in two ways: a flat rate of $100 or less, or a fixed rate based on the number of signatures on the ball, according to a press release.
Zeta Beta Tau is a new fraternity on campus. Robinson said they do not yet have as many connections with other groups as the better-established fraternities on campus and they have to work that much harder to gain attention for their events. Nonetheless, there was a decent turnout, highlighted by several distinguished guests.
As far as where the idea of an enormous ball for charity came from, Robinson said, “I wish I could say it was original. It’s something our fraternity does nationally.”
The ball will be appearing on the commencement lawn today, the Friendship Walk on Wednesday and outside of the Multicultural Center on Thursday.
Zeta Beta Tau will be selling raffle tickets throughout the week. According to a press release, prices donated from different organizations include In-N-Out meals, Sea World tickets and UCLA football tickets. The proceeds from the event will go to Children’s Hospital.