Cornell Delta Gamma
Doing Good at Cornell since 1885
What does it Mean to "Do Good?"
Joining Delta Gamma doesn't just mean joining a sisterhood, it means pledging to help the community by devoting yourself to our motto: Do Good. Every DG member volunteers for a minimum of 16 hours each calendar year. Throughout the year, we dedicate chapter meeting times to spotlight specific programs. In addition to individual service, we all join together to raise funds for national and local philanthropic organizations in one major event each semester. In 2022, we launched RealTalk, an annual fall speaker series in partnership with the Cornell Gender Equity Resource Center. Each spring we focus on our national philanthropy, Service for Sight, which supports the five schools founded by Delta Gammas and other North American organizations that provide access and advocacy for people in the blind or visually impaired community or who promote sight preservation and conservation. This philanthropy has been at the heart of the Delta Gamma's mission since 1936 when a member who was blind petitioned to adopt “Aid to the Blind” as our official philanthropy. Scroll below to see some of our most recent projects and a letter from our Vice President of Foundation!
A Letter from Our VP Foundation
Hi everyone!
My name is Athena Borca, and I am a junior at Cornell in Delta Gamma, studying biomedical engineering. As Vice President of Foundations, I am in charge of overseeing the philanthropy and service of our chapter.
Delta Gamma’s national philanthropy is Service for Sight, which provides access and advocacy for people in the blind and visually impaired community. Nationally, Delta Gamma has established five schools across the United States that support the visually impaired community. When we raise money as a sorority, it goes towards these five schools or any other North American organization providing advocacy for the visually impaired community or sight preservation and conservation.
As a chapter, we’ve raised money for Service for Sight in several ways. The organization we most often choose to support is Guiding Eyes for the Blind at Cornell. This student-run organization helps increase awareness of raising guide dogs for those with vision loss. In the past, our chapter has volunteered to help raise these dogs, made dog toys, and helped raise both awareness and money for the organization. We have been lucky enough to work with this fantastic organization, and we look forward to continuing our partnership to further support Service for Sight.
Additionally, we throw a signature fundraising event each year: Anchor Jam or Anchor Slam. Anchor Jam consists of a dance competition between teams coached by sisters of Delta Gamma. Last spring, we successfully hosted this dance competition. In other years, we have hosted Anchor Slam, a basketball tournament coached by Delta Gamma, to raise money for Service for Sight. These signature fundraisers are always so much fun and an excellent way for our chapter to bond while giving back to Service for Sight.
Delta Gammas at Cornell are actively involved in the community– both inside and outside of the chapter. One universal idea between our sisters is that we truly uphold our motto: Do Good. Philanthropy is one of the highlights of my experience as a Delta Gamma, and it has indeed been an honor to serve as Vice President of Foundations for the past year and a half. We look forward to continuing our philanthropy and service efforts both for Service for Sight and the Cornell and surrounding community.
01
AnchorJam S'22
Each year we host our annual Anchor Jam fundraiser where our members coach male dance teams who perform against each other for the chance to win the best dance award. Even while it was snowing, our teams gave 110% for Guiding Eyes for the Blind, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing guide dogs to people with vision loss. Our goal is to have double the turnout next spring!
02
Turkey Trot F'21
We co-hosted a turkey trot on campus last Thanksgiving in support of Project Share, an organization that provides families in need with Thanksgiving meals.
03
My Dear Friend F'22
My Dear Friend is a special program from the GlamourGals organization which aims to alleviate isolation and loneliness for senior citizens through holiday letter campaigns. When a panhellenic member and ambassador for GlamourGals told us about this amazing organization, our members banded together and wrote more than 200 letters to senior citizens in hopes of brightening their holiday season.
04
Elves Program F'22
This holiday season, we worked with the Tompkins County's Elves Program which assists at least 1,000 students each year in more than 30 area schools. The Elves Program provides clothing, toys, school supplies and warm blankets to kids who are identified by school personnel as having the greatest need. This year, we sponsored a family and our members helped spread the holiday cheer by getting gifts for the family that will be sure to make the season memorable.
