(Mock) Rocking the Night Away: A Fall Philanthropy Recap

Alpha Chi Omega
Dec 18, 2023
4 min read

Updated: Dec 21, 2023

On Monday, October 23, Alpha Chi Omega kicked off its 20th annual Mock Rock, our biggest philanthropy event of the year - and the largest Greek Life philanthropy event on Virginia Tech's campus. Keep reading to see a recap of the best week and how it all goes to support Domestic Violence Awareness!

Written by: Carol Rector - December 2023

At Alpha Chi Omega, we hold our philanthropy near and dear to our hearts and our greatest pride is our annual week of Mock Rock in the fall supporting the Women's Resource Center of the New River Valley.

We kicked the week off with what campus knows us best for, our beloved dance competition. A record number of 37 organizations from all over Virginia Tech came to show off their best moves and demonstrate their support for Domestic Violence Awareness. But the festivities didn't stop there, the week went on with a volleyball tournament, percentage nights, a canned food drive, and booths all around campus spreading awareness and sharing information about the Women's Resource Center with our campus and community.

Our fall philanthropy is so essential to who we are as a chapter and we are so excited to share our experience with you. Keep reading!

On Monday, the fun began with our annual Mock Rock dance-off. Before the big night, organizations sign up to participate and spend weeks choreographing dances to perform for the crowd in Burruss Hall, adding posters and audios that spread information about Domestic Violence Awareness for extra points.

Pictured: Alpha Tau Omega performing their dance.

To kick off the show, one of our favorite traditions is to have the newest initiated member class perform a "New Girl Dance". This year, our class of '23 ROCKED the stage and started the competition off with a bang! 68 of our girls showed out and had an amazing time dancing on the big stage. Being such a special way to bond with the women in your member class, the "New Girl Dance" is something that we Alpha Chi's remember and cherish as some of the best times with our sisters.

With an equal amount of laughter, applause, and moments of silence in honor of victims of domestic violence, the competition commences. Afterward, our panel of judges tally up the points and choose two winners - one from a fraternity and one from a sorority.

We are so lucky to have had Laura Beth Weaver, Executive Director of the New River Valley Resource Center, support us in our philanthropy and sit on our panel of judges again this year. Ms. Weaver has been our liaison at the Women's Resource Center for several years. She has made a long-lasting impact on our chapter and cultivated many personal connections with our sisters. Her down-to-earth nature makes her easy to connect with and her motivational lectures keep us mindful and passionate about the work that we're doing and the people that we're supporting.

Pictured: Our sisters with Laura Beth Weaver.

Ms. Weaver's involvement with our chapter and our philanthropy year after year has been something that we are so grateful for. Alpha Chi Omega will miss Ms. Weaver immensely as she moves on to pursue the next steps in her career, and we wish her all the best! We are so lucky to have had her participate in this year's Mock Rock.

With sold-out tickets and a record number of participating organizations, this was a tremendous start to our week. The Mock Rock dance-off is one of the most well-known and anticipated Greek Life philanthropy events on Virginia Tech's campus, and this year was no exception.

Pictured: Our MC '23 performing their "New Girl Dance". So proud!

After a successful dance-off, we continued the week with a volleyball tournament on Tuesday. Participating organizations brought their A-game and competed for the title, winning lots of points for their teams. We had so much fun coaching the organizations throughout the week and cheering them on!

We also hosted percentage nights at various restaurants around Blacksburg throughout the week. Our informational booths around campus were also a hit - with "Pie an Alpha Chi" being a fun addition. Participants can buy a shaving cream "pie" and playfully smash it into one of our brave sisters' faces. What a fun way to raise some money!

Pictured: Megan Szakos cheering on Lambda Chi Alpha!

On Wednesday, we hosted a canned food drive in support of the New River Valley Women's Resource Center's shelter. We are so impressed with the level of participation and ended the week with a whopping total of more than 4000 donations worth around $5,500!

Pictured: Our Great Room filled with donated cans!

Our house was full to the brim with evidence of the generosity of our community and the impact that our philanthropy will have on the lives of those in need.

Lastly, we hosted a banner challenge and sold t-shirts, hats, and other merchandise items throughout the week, designed by our Vice President of Public Relations and Marketing, Sally Morrison, and her committee. They fit this years' theme - The Beach Boys! - perfectly and were a hit among the participating organizations.

Pictured: Our Mock Rock Chairs, Lauryn Schiffrin, Emily Kane, and Anna Goodson, and our VP of Philanthropy, Arianna Wright, modeling our Mock Rock merch!

After a week of activities, our wonderful Mock Rock Chairs tallied up the points and declared a winner. This year, the much-deserving G.E.R.M.A.N. Club of Virginia Tech took the crown!

Finally, we are elated to announce that this year, Alpha Chi Omega raised more than $40,000 for the New River Valley Women's Resource Center. We could not be happier to support an organization that means so much to us and changes the lives of people in our community for the better. We also owe a huge special thanks to our Vice President of Philanthropy, Arianna Wright, and our Mock Rock Chairs, Lauryn Schiffrin, Emily Kane, and Anna Goodson, for organizing and executing this week of service. We are so grateful for you!

Most of all, we would like to thank everyone who donated to our cause throughout the week, whether it be organizations on campus, people in the Blacksburg community, or family members and friends from all over the world.

We could not have done this without your continued support!

UNTIL 1 IN 4 IS NO MORE!

Thank you for your interest and support in Epsilon Tau!

We look forward to sharing our stories with you.

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