Inside his Edens Quadrangle single, the president of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity picks up a small index card file from on top of his dresser. Change rattles inside.
"A couple of days ago there were $900 in this box," senior Garver Moore said, referring to the funds his fraternity raised for Hurricane Katrina relief in collaboration with Delta Gamma sorority.
"Our goal was $3,333.33," he explained. "Since the alums will doubly match any money we raise, that would make a total donation of $10,000."
Several fraternities and sororities have responded to aid victims of the catastrophe that ravaged the Gulf Coast a week and a half ago.
"People are asking, 'Where can we make the most difference for [those] in need?'" said Todd Adams, assistant dean of students. "The biggest challenge has been coordinating the efforts of all 36 organizations."
Some groups have mobilized their alumni networks. For example, a portion of SigEp's and Delta Gamma's matching funds come from the Manilow Fund for Health and Hope, which was founded by singer Barry Manilow. It was arranged by the president of Manilow's management company, who is a former SigEp brother from the University of Southern California.
The two groups sold $2 raffle tickets at the West Campus bus stop, raising $2,318. The winner will get an Xbox and a $100 shopping spree at Southpoint mall.
When combined with matching funds from the Manilow Foundation and SigEp alumni, the total donation will be $6,954.
"People were coming to the bus stop and buying 100 tickets," Moore said. "Kids were calling their parents to tell them to add more money to their bursar's and FLEX accounts."
SigEp and Delta Gamma are not alone in their efforts. The greek Community plans to incorporate hurricane relief into this year's Greek Week programming, Interfraternity Council President Jay McKenna, a senior and member of Sigma Nu, wrote in an e-mail. McKenna said the greek response to Katrina is distinguished by "the diversity of projects and efforts that we are seeing."
Sorority Kappa Kappa Gamma focused their charity on Lake Providence, La., the beleaguered hometown of senior Cassie Condrey, a Kappa sister. According to Condrey, her hometown is located in "statistically the poorest area in the country," but since there are no Red Cross shelters in northeastern Louisiana, it receives no Red Cross aid.
Though Lake Providence was spared by the hurricane, it has been deluged with refugees, and the population of the city has nearly doubled.
A family friend who lost her home and all her belongings in the hurricane sent Condrey an e-mail asking if she had any spare clothes she could send to Louisiana. Condrey e-mailed her sorority sisters Saturday to ask for help.
Since then Condrey has received "garbage bags and plastic bins full of clothing and pillows and other necessities." Monday night, Kappa assembled 100 "Katrina Kits," which contained school and hygiene supplies for evacuees staying in Lake Providence. Condrey will deliver the donated kits and clothes when she flies home to Louisiana Saturday.
Off-campus fraternities Eta Prime and Delta Phi Alpha-formerly Kappa Sigma and Sigma Alpha Epsilon, respectively-held a benefit party at George's Garage last Thursday.
The management of George's agreed to donate half of the $5 cover charge to the Red Cross.
Eta Prime also sold t-shirts to benefit Katrina victims, and according to chapter president Michael Kenney, a senior, the two fraternities raised nearly $2,000 between the George's benefit and t-shirt sales.
"Obviously the main motivation was to help people in need," Kenney said. "But some of the motivation came from the fact that the [Duke] administration saw us in a negative way and something like this was a way to get our name associated with a positive cause."
Delta Phi Alpha president Billy Fennebresque, also a senior, agrees that the fraternities' efforts prove that service "is something the members of our two fraternities care about."
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