Vera Bradley bingo benefits local philanthropy

Vera Bradley bags and a variety of other goods will be offered April 21 courtesy of National Panhellenic Council. The event will benefit Sidney’s Safe! Foundation and the Pack Them With Love program, which give children meals over the weekend.

“The women in Panhellenic wanted to keep the money donated in the area,” said Assistant Director of Student Engagement for Greek Affairs Julie Fletcher. “They wanted to have a philanthropy event for something that is local.”

All prizes are donations courtesy of the four chapters involved, Fletcher said. Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Gamma Delta, Phi Mu and Zeta Tau Alpha sororities will be present at the event.

“It’s a bingo event because it can reach a wide variety of individuals, moms, daughters, grandmothers,” Fletcher said. “It’s not just a female event either.”

There will be plenty of items males can win, said Hailey Holke, Panhellenic Council vice president of philanthropy and scholarship.

“As far as men go, we’ll have two bowties and some Southern Prep T-shirts,” Holke said.

The event is a result of collaboration between the Panhellenic sororities focusing on local philanthropies, she said.

“We didn’t want to choose national philanthropies because we didn’t want to seem biased toward any one sorority,” Holke said. “This gives our council a chance to reach into the community and be more involved.”

Sidney’s Safe founder Sarah Thompson will be speaking at the event, Holke said. A slideshow containing images of Sidney’s Safe events will also be playing at the event.

“I want it to be a fun event, but I don’t want people to just show up thinking that it’s not for a purpose,” Holke said. “I don’t want people coming to the event not knowing what we’re actually doing this for.”

Tickets for the event can be purchased from the Office of Student Engagement or from Panhellenic members.

“The ticket is $10, but Vera Bradley bags are over $50 so if you win you’ve really done well with the $10 investment,” Fletcher said.

Everyone who comes will leave with something, even if it’s from the candy bar, Holke said.

“This is the first year for the event so we’re excited,” Fletcher said. “We hope it can be annual and we will be assessing how to make it better for the future. ”