Greek bands rock out at Gammapalooza

GAMMA, Wellness Resource Center teach MU students how to party responsibly.

By Kyle Daly

Published Oct. 9, 2007

Sorority and fraternity members cheered as the musical talent took the stage on Friday evening. Even though the voice on the microphone kept cutting in and out due to technical problems, the words to the third song were unmistakable:

"Hold me closer tiny dancer..."

As the last note of "Tiny Dancer" faded away, the crowd erupted in cheers. It was only 5 p.m., and the Elton John concert at the Mizzou Arena had not yet begun.

It might not have been John, but the small crowd of students who gathered around the green carpeted stage stationed on the east side of Stankowski Field did not show any signs of complaint. A band composed of members of FarmHouse fraternity began the evening by playing songs by John and other well-known artists.

Gammapalooza, the official name of the small concert held on Stankowski field, served as the dramatic ending to a weeklong series of activities, competitions and events put on by Greeks Advocating Mature Management of Alcohol.

GAMMA plans events and speakers to promote alcohol responsibility, GAMMA spokeswoman Abby Hewitt said.

GAMMA is a sorority and fraternity peer educational program that exists on hundreds of college campuses nationwide. At MU, GAMMA works alongside the Wellness Resource Center to promote alcohol awareness and organize events among the Greek community.

Gammapalooza marked the official end of GAMMA Week, during which different sororities and fraternities came together to participate in various activities and events as a way to promote alcohol responsibility awareness.

"What we were trying to do was make a main event where we could have the Greek community come together where alcohol was not involved, have a good time and celebrate a week of good decisions," GAMMA Director Alex Roberts said.

GAMMA Week also served as a competition of spirit between participating Greek houses. The week consisted of three main events: a speech by professional speaker Ross Szabo called "Mixed Drinks, Mixed Emotions: Alcohol Abuse and Mental Health," a banner competition and Gammapalooza.

Each of the three events were judged, and the chapter with the greatest attendance and show of spirit at the various events was deemed winner of the week and awarded a free bus voucher worth $400.

"(Gammapalooza) counts for quite a bit of GAMMA Week," Hewitt said.

But the Gammapalooza concert was not the only event taking place on Stankowski Field Friday evening. Multiple organizations, including CHEERS, Peers Advocating Wellness Solutions, STRIPES and other wellness resource groups came together to promote alcohol awareness.

The Wellness Resource Center also held the Alcohol Responsibility Walk on the track around Stankowski Field from noon to midnight in conjunction with the event. Hundreds of MU students showed up to participate.

The 12-hour event was dedicated to increasing alcohol awareness.

"It's just to increase their awareness," Wellness Resource Center Director Kim Dude said. "It's more symbolic than anything. You can't just talk the talk, you have to walk the walk."

Students walked or jogged around the track, which was lined with signs printed with statistics relating to the alcohol responsibility habits of MU students, which were taken from the 2006 Wellness Survey.

Leigh Neier, a peer education graduate assistant from the Wellness Resource Center, said about 800 walkers participated in the event.

"The overall message is alcohol responsibility," Neier said. "We're certainly not telling students not to drink, but if they chose to drink, they should do so responsibly."

In addition to Greek organizations, teams from residence halls and Freshman Interest Groups also participated.

Teams were required to walk at least six laps and be at the event for two hours.

After walking for two hours, students were given a free t-shirt for their participation.

Juniors Brittany Fore and Will Plummer from the Mark Twain residence hall team were seen out on the track around 5:30 p.m.

"We've been walking since 4," Fore said. "Some from our team walked five miles."

In addition to the walk, students could play a number of games, including jousting, balloon darts and even Xbox.

One game was created to go along with the theme of alcohol responsibility awareness. Participants of the drunk biking game were required to ride a tricycle around a course of orange cones while wearing drinking goggles.

"It made me nauseous afterwards," junior Ashton Gerding said.

But the main event of the night was the Gammapalooza concert.

Seven bands, from six fraternities and one sorority, provided live music for the walkers. The bands included members of Delta Upsilon, Tau Kappa Epsilon, FarmHouse, Alpha Kappa Lambda, Phi Kappa Psi, Sigma Chi, Phi Kappa Theta, and Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternities and Kappa Alpha Theta sorority.

The music was mostly a variation of modern rock and classic rock.

"They are mostly playing cover songs, but they are also playing original songs," Roberts said.

The winners of GAMMA Week were announced at the end of the night.

Delta Delta Delta sorority reigned supreme over the sorority houses, and Delta Upsilon took the crown for the fraternities.

As the sun set and the music died, the people on the track kept walking. Mizzou After Dark was there late in the evening to provide participants with a bacon, egg and biscuit breakfast from Jack's Gourmet Restaurant.

Freshman Jon Berkbigler said he loved the atmosphere of the evening.

"It was fun listening to the music they had playing," he said. "You could just sit and listen. It was cool. It was different."

GAMMA is a nationwide organization affiliated with Boosting Alcohol Consciousness Concerning the Health of University Students.

According to the BACCHUS network Web site, GAMMA began in 1985 as a way to promote alcohol awareness among members of fraternities and sororities.

All Greek students nationwide have the option of starting their own GAMMA program at their universities.

— Reporter

contributed to this report.