Jamboree for the Junction celebrates second year
A dunk tank and a pie-throwing event comprised two of the carnival-style booths run by Greek houses at Saturday’s Jamboree for the Junction. Students, parents and community members came out in full force to support the Junction, a center for at-risk teens in the Upper Valley, while enjoying performances from dance groups Shebalite, Splendaplum and Ujiheavy, as well as music from a cappella group Summerphonix and live band Dan Calano and the Euphemisms.
This isthe second yearthat the summer Panhellenic Council organized Jamboree for the Junction, summer Panhell president Taylor Bradley ’15 said. The group has been planning the event since March. Eliana Piper ’14, who served as last summer’s Panhell president and is now the organization’s full-year president, pioneered the event.
Jamboree raised over $2,500 for the Junction last summer, and Bradley said she expects this year’s event to raise a comparable sum.
“We had a huge turn out at the beginning, and we’re really happy with how it turned out,” Bradley said. She said the raffle and donations for the barbeque were the event’s largest source of funds.
The event was planned to coincide with sophomore family weekend as more people would be on campus to participate in the festivities.
“We definitely saw a lot of people from the Hanover community, but I think in terms of who was here most, it was students and their parents,” Bradley said.
The Junction, based in White River Junction, is dedicated to providing at-risk teens a safe space to learn life skill and hosts activities, helps with job searches and provides home-cooked meals in the evenings for these teens.
“It’s a really great organization that we thought would be perfect because it’s close to home and it’s something that we thought we could do good for,” Bradley said.
The weather, performances and booths contributed to the event’s attendance — clear skies coupled with temperature in the high 70s and low 80s.
Alpha Delta, Theta Delta Chi and Gamma Delta Chi fraternities ran a dunk tank. Alpha Phi sorority hosted a face-painting booth, and Alpha Xi Delta sorority ran a water balloon toss. Phi Delta Alpha fraternity jointly hosted a pie-throwing event with Sigma Delta and Kappa Delta Epsilon sororities called “Pie-a-Delta.” Beta Alpha Omega fraternity set up a football toss, rewarding successful participants with prizes.
“I think everyone is having a lot of fun and it’s for a great cause,” Kristen Rothe ’15 said. “It’s a beautiful day out, so it’s been really nice.”