Recently in the news, there have been some pretty terrible stories surrounding fraternities and sororities. We've heard about cruel hazing rituals, disturbing acts of discrimination, and a plethora of other scandals, which unfortunately shed a very bad light on the otherwise amazing Greek system. But a couple of days ago, I came across a story that restored my faith in this longstanding establishment which spans across schools all over the country.
Twelve-year old Lexi Brown was recently admitted to the Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA in California due to recurring tumors in her lungs. Furthermore, doctors found out that her heart was only working at 15 percent, which was absolutely devastating for her and her family. In order to take her mind off of the painful treatments and disappointing diagnosis, Lexi and her mother put a sign in her hospital window asking for a pizza delivery.
The Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity house is located directly across the street from Lexi's hospital window, which gave them a perfect view of her sign. To Lexi's surprise, not only did she get a free pizza personally delivered to her by five members of SAE, but the fraternity also came bearing a dozen roses, along with a guitar to serenade her. The acts of kindness didn't stop there, though. The brothers struck up a genuine friendship with Lexi and her family. They found out that Lexi enjoyed soccer, so one of the members on the soccer team arranged for a visit from the squad. Soon after this, UCLA's quarterback and an SAE brother took their turn visiting her. Lexi quickly became very popular among UCLA students, as she received additional visits from the men's and women's rowing, swimming, and tennis teams. The Christian Campus Ministry and two sororities spent time getting to know her as well.
But Lexi's most dedicated visitors were the brothers of SAE. They came to see her almost every day, either stopping by to give her gifts or sticking around for hours to keep her company. The hospital even bent their strict rules about visiting hours because they were so touched by the boys' kindness towards Lexi, her family, and the staff.
The boys went above and beyond, though, when they lit the entire exterior of their house, which is a holiday tradition for them, in honor of Lexi. Not only did they use purple lights to show off her favorite color, but they also spelled out her name and added a beating heart, which shined brightly enough for Lexi to see from her hospital room window.
Members of SAE from around the nation have recently been donating to a fund which will help Lexi's family pay for her hospital bills. These incredible acts of kindness are so much more than "commendable." It truly amazes me that a group of young men who could be stereotyped as "rowdy frat bros" would go out of their way to make a complete stranger smile in the midst of a nightmare. So to all of you out there who read the terrible stories about Greek life and proceed to bash it, let this be just one example of the virtues and philanthropy that constitute most of the Greek system. And to the members of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, thank you for setting a good example and giving the Greek community something to be proud of.
