Letter to the Editor: Greeks issue a ‘Bid Day’ for change
This summer was particularly difficult for the Rider community as a whole, and the Greek system was no exception. A few days before the start of the academic year, the leaders of the Greek Community came together for their annual retreat. In the past the focus would have been on the next Bronc Buffet and Fall Recruitment. However, this year, attention was focused on new policies, new staff and a whole lot of change.
Change is not always easy. In a community where tradition is the foundation of events that have been occurring for decades, transition can be an extremely difficult adjustment. They began to discuss how the Greek Community was going to cope with all of these changes. Right away one of the Greek leaders started to talk about the importance of Greek unity. Moving away from recruiting for their own chapters and constant competition, they saw a much bigger picture. The conversation moved to Greek unity shirts that were to be worn by the whole Greek Community once a week. They were very excited about an idea they had for a quote to put on the back of the shirts. “I’m a movement by myself, but I’m a force when we’re together.” To most of you those may just be lyrics from a Fabolous song, but this Greek Community is certainly a force when it’s together. Greek students did an extraordinary job of showing this when they came out in full force for a new Bid Day tradition on Saturday, Oct. 6.
Some perceive all Greek events to revolve around alcohol, but Bid Day weekend showed otherwise. The members of our resilient Greek Community spent Saturday welcoming their new members into their chapters and into the community. They started out the day with a traditional ceremony followed by a barbecue, culminating in an extremely successful event in the Cavalla Room. Hundreds of Greek students, new members and alumni packed the dance floor, cheering on their new members as they were introduced again to the whole community. They cheered each other on in a pie-eating contest, game show and banner contest. They danced together, ate together, took home souvenirs of the night and proved that they certainly do not need the help of alcohol to have a good time.
Faced with adversity, change and quite a few critics, the Greek Community here at Rider spent the weekend showing its true colors. The Greeks showed what their brotherhood and sisterhood truly means to them. We are proud to work with such an ambitious, determined group of leaders and want to thank you all for your effort and hard work. Congratulations on a successful Bid Day, and keep up the good work.
— Katie Guerrierie
House Director/Program Coordinator
