Collegiate Times

Image: 2012-09-27 20:29:07

FarmHouse Fraternity will be holding its first Mud Run to close out their philanthropy week on Saturday.

The three-day long philanthropic effort by the fraternity has consisted of a variety of events, including a percentage night at Moe’s on Wednesday and Public Displays of Affections, which encouraged other organizations to recognize them physically, verbally or virtually throughout the week. Now, Mud Run is bringing everything to a close by supporting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Thomas Williamson, a senior and internal philanthropy chair for FarmHouse, saw this as a perfect opportunity to make others more knowledgeable about LLS.

“We want people to be talking about us and raise awareness for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society,” the crop and soil environmental sciences major said.

This is the first year FarmHouse will sponsor the Mud Run for their philanthropy. The fraternity previously held other events to sponsor LLS, but decided a Mud Run would better support their cause.

“A few years ago we had a chili cook-off and we found a lot of success with it,” said Chris Atkins, a senior agricultural sciences major. “But we found that with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, trying to bring awareness to the cause is a huge thing.”

The upcoming Mud Run will be a relay-style event where teams of five will have to complete various challenges in order to cross the finish line. 

“It’s not about winning,” Williamson said. “It’s about toughing out the run like many have to do with cancer everyday.”

The event has captured not only the attention of the Greek community, but also other clubs and organizations on campus.

“We have at least a dozen different Greek organizations and a few clubs that will be participating in our philanthropy, many of which are entering multiple teams,” Williamson said. “Every day the number seems to go up." 

FarmHouse hopes to spread the word about their fraternity, and hopes students will begin to see them as more than just an agricultural organization. 

“Obviously our roots are in agriculture, but we’re way beyond that on campus,” Atkins said. “The other groups that reach out and show that they’re willing to support the same cause we support — that’s really inspiring.”

The Relay for Life executive team has also submitted a team in support of LLS.

“They’re really passionate about fighting all types of cancer,” Atkins said. “To see Relay reach out and support our cause is something that we’re extremely proud of.”

Although it is only the first year the event will be held, FarmHouse hopes to accomplish what they set out for, and to have the ability to continue the event in the future.

“We feel like it’s an event that everyone can participate in,” Atkins said. 

Win or lose, everyone involved in the event hopes to see success through raising both money and awareness for LLS together.

“When these teams come out, we’re really excited to see them give everything they have to just get their team across the finish line,” Atkins said. “We don’t care if it takes them 10 minutes or 10 days. We will be there to support them and cheer them on, and ensure that they complete it as a group. With cancer, the entire family has to complete the task with the one person who’s struggling with it.”

A version of this article appeared in the Sep 28 issue of the Collegiate Times.