Lending a Helping Hand
The first line of Phi Mu’s Creed has been a call to serve others since it was written more than 100 years ago. From our earliest days of supporting a health mobile that delivered health care to women and children in rural areas to supporting toy carts for children in hospitals to our current partnership with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, Phi Mu has long been committed to lending a helping hand to those in need.
We are proud to be the only sorority to partner with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and have an alliance with the National Women’s History Museum. We were also the first sorority to establish a National Philanthropy Day more than 20 years ago. Lending a helping hand is at the heart of who we are as Phi Mus.
During the 2023-2024 academic year, Phi Mu at LSU raised over $200,000. In total, we have raised over one million dollars in our time partnering with Our Lady of the Lake.
“To lend to those less fortunate a helping hand.”
Letter from the Philanthropy Chair
My name is Madalyn Harris and I am so grateful to serve as the Philanthropy Chairwoman for Phi Mu Alpha Eta! During recruitment, Phi Mu stood out to me during philanthropy round because of how passionate and hands-on they were with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, specifically Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital here in Baton Rouge. The first time I visited the hospital was for a tour with other Phi Mus, I was completely mesmerized by the special ways it was designed to accommodate every child who walked through its doors. One moment that left a lasting impression on me was seeing the MRI room dedicated in the name of Phi Mu Alpha Eta. The plaque outside that room filled me with an even deeper appreciation for the impact our chapter has made.
During the 2023-2024 academic year, Phi Mu at LSU raised over $200,000. In total, we have raised over one million dollars in our time partnering with Our Lady of the Lake. Being just 15 minutes from 4090 Lakeshore Drive, we are fortunate to serve Our Lady of the Lake often—whether it’s decorating hospital playrooms for Halloween and Easter, packing Christmas gift bags for patients, taking hospital tours, and so much more! Another way we get to be hands-on is through closed circuits, where we go to a playroom in the hospital and play games like bingo and trivia virtually with kids who cannot leave their rooms to play. Additionally, Phi Mu holds one big philanthropy fundraising event each semester: Man of the Year, a male pageant held in the fall, and Bonnamu, a battle of the bands competition in the spring!
Our chapter is deeply passionate about Children’s Miracle Network and Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital and we are incredibly grateful for the opportunity to serve them! I am truly honored to share our love for philanthropy with our community and cannot wait to continue serving with our chapter in the future!
LIOB,
Madalyn Harris
BonnaMu
This past spring, Alpha Eta held our most beloved philanthropy event: BonnaMu! We hosted a battle of the bands competition and had a night of music, fun, and service. This event alone raised over $90,000 for Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital. We could not be more proud of our chapter members for reaching this goal.
Man of The Year
Last year, our chapter organized the Man of the Year pageant, a week-long event where men from our LSU community competed in various activities to raise funds for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. We hosted a pageant at The Varsity of Baton Rouge as part of our fundraising efforts, all while visiting with our Miracle Kids at our local CMN Hospital, Our Lady of the Lake. In 2023, our Man of the Year event raised an outstanding $75,569 for CMN Hospitals.
