Students pied for Global Playground

Walking to class, a paper plate covered in whip cream suddenly smacks you in the face. While you are now thinking about how you are going to explain this to your professor, you have simultaneously contributed to Global Playground’s efforts at enhancing education through their many projects. 

The College of William & Mary’s service fraternity APO Nu Rho Chapter hosts one major philanthropy event each semester. The fall philanthropy, A-Pie-O, allows students to pay $4 to get members to pie their friends. All of the proceeds for the fall philanthropy are being donated to Global Playground.

“It was really cheap because whip cream and paper plates aren’t that expensive,” Aidan De Sena, Vice President of Philanthropy for APO, said. “We thought you could just get your frustration out by pieing people, and it would be fun to see your friends pied.”

The idea to donate the funds to Global Playground came from a challenge from Global Playground Chairman Doug Bunch. This amount will be matched by a $5000 donation from an alum of the College, A. Joseph Jay, III, ’03, J.D. ’06, and the money will be used to fund a Global Playground Teaching Fellowship for a William & Mary student.

“Global Playground is trying a challenge grant, if you raise five thousand they will donate five thousand,” De Sena said. “There are a couple of organizations on campus working on raising five thousand dollars, and Drew [Stelljes, Director of the Office of Community Engagement and Scholarship] asked APO individually if we could raise one thousand.”

The event raised about $300.

“It was a silly event but I think it was so different from anything else that that is why it was successful,” De Sena said.

APO Philanthropy committee member Sarah Klotz first learned about Global Playground in her Leadership and Community Engagement class. She helped orchestrate the event.

“If we could secure a spot for a William & Mary student that would be incredible, especially because Doug graduated from William & Mary and started [GP] with people from William & Mary, so it would be really nice to continue that connection,” Klotz said.

In addition to the A-Pie-O fall philanthropy, De Sena and other students on campus are planning a spring farmer’s market philanthropy event. They will work with students and the Williamsburg community to create a farmer’s market fundraiser with proceeds going to Global Playground.

“We think we can generate a lot of money from the farmers market, if we can use it as a way of bridging the gap between the community and the campus,” De Sena said. “We are hoping to have performers from campus to show what our campus has to offer to the community.”

Global Playground Intern Taylor Nelson and Beta Theta Pi Vice President Nick Hampson are also helping De Sena to coordinate the event.

“Right now we have been having meetings with Colonial Williamsburg and the Merchant’s Association to get that ready for the spring,” De Sena said.