More to Miss Greek than glamour

Dionne Desiano
2005-04-08

From opera to salsa dancing, tonight's Miss Greek competition will be filled with the energy of 14 young women as representatives from 14 UW sororities compete for the crown of Miss Greek.

The event will take place at 6 in Meany Hall, and costs $10 per ticket.

An annual event, the competition judges contestants based on a personality walk, a philanthropic address, a talent performance and impromptu questions. In addition, contestants individually fundraise for the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC).

Last year's winner, Claire Cordner, was crowned Miss Greek in April 2004. After seven months of fundraising, she knows the degree of work that goes into each year's competition.

Cordner represented her sorority, Alpha Gamma Delta, in the competition. This year marks the 19th-annual Miss Greek competition. Over the last 19 years the competition has raised more than $900,000.

Early in the year, sororities nominate women within their own houses and the candidates are then voted on. One girl is chosen to represent each house in the first month of school. Then, from October until the date of the competition, the contestants meet every Tuesday night to learn about fundraising and turn in the money they have collected so far for FHCRC.

The men of Delta Tau Delta host the competition, and members try to aid the women in their quest to raise funds.

The nominees routinely write letters to UW alumni and local businesses requesting assistance. Delta Tau Delta men take the letters and mail them for the sorority members.

The fraternity also produces T-shirts and rubber Washington wristbands, similar to the Live Strong bracelets, for the women to sell. The competitors can sell tickets to the Miss Greek competition and to Sonics games as additional ways to raise money.

Brayden Jessen and Brett Partin are both sophomores and members of Delta Tau Delta. As the events coordinator of Miss Greek, Jessen designs tickets, posters and programs, and meets weekly with the nominees.

Partin is co-chair of Miss Greek. He collects the raised money, coordinates fundraisers with the girls and also attends the weekly meetings.

Sarah Pierce is a freshman majoring in biology. She is one of the nominees whom Partin and Jessen are assisting throughout the competition.

Pierce is part of the UW Jazz Choir and will be singing for the talent portion. She was nominated by her sorority Alpha Gamma Delta.

"This competition is about giving to Fred Hutch -- not beating other houses. It's working as a team to help cancer research," said Pierce.

Cordner explained that the fraternity assists the contestants with raising money because many local businesses get hit hard throughout the year with all the fundraisers the Greek community sponsors.

Jean Kincaid, a freshman majoring in Spanish, is representing Beta Kappa Alpha. "It is nice to have recognition that I have worked so hard," said Kincaid.

Although Kincaid has been playing piano since she was a child, she decided to learn how to salsa dance for the competition. She said it has taken a lot of time and patience to master the three-minute routine she will perform.

The points system for judging the women is designed so that money is not the sole factor in determining who wins. There have been numerous times when the top fundraiser did not win.

Possibly one of the more colorful portions of the competition is the personality walk. During this walk the women get to pick their favorite song to play in the background, and they dress to represent their personality. It's a chance to express their individuality and personal style.

During this walk the contestants are escorted onto stage by Jessen and Colin Mansfield, who was Mr. Greek 2005.

Then the competition is narrowed to five finalists and each of the finalists answers an impromptu question related to current events, issues or philosophies.

Heidi Corrigan, FHCRC special-events liaison, is a judge for Miss Greek. She estimates Miss Greek will have raised about $1 million for the FHCRC. Each year $50,000 to $80,000 is raised and given to the cancer research center.

"Fundraising isn't a big enough part of the pageant, but I think it would be nice if we spent more time at Fred Hutch," said Kincaid.

While Kincaid wishes contestants could be more involved with the FHCRC, Cordner said it's a positive thing to see the Greek community raising money for a common cause.

"Don't let yourself get discouraged because no matter what, it's a great cause -- the Greek system is coming together to raise money for cancer research," said Cordner.

Pierce explained that this competition taught her a lot about herself and that it's worth taking on a challenge. "It all depends on how much work you want to put into the cause," she said. "Personal determination is what pushes you."