Their Pi Kappa Phi chapter, which chartered in 2008, volunteers and works closely with a local chapter of AbilityFirst, an organization established in 1926 in Southern California. Ability First serves people with different abilities by offering a broad range of programs and services to children and adults with different abilities.
In the past year, the Theta Sigma Chapter has spent time with people with different abilities and have helped the programming staff at AbilityFirst – Long Beach. They have helped set decorations, serve food and drinks, and dance the night away with participants for themed dances. They have also raised money and participated in their annual Stroll & Roll 5k on the back lots of Universal Studios.
“Once we started getting more involved in volunteering with AbilityFirst – Long Beach it was easy to see how it changed the lives of many of the guys in our chapter,” said Mitchell Danford of the Theta Sigma chapter, “Five brothers signed up and participated in the Journey of Hope this last summer of 2014, after seeing how rewarding working with people with disabilities can be. I know I have learned so much after my summer doing Journey of Hope and I wouldn’t have taken the step to sign up if I didn’t get the chance to volunteer with AbilityFirst.”
Thus, it is no surprise that after a year of fundraising for The Ability Experience, Theta Sigma Chapter has been awarded a Circle of Giving grant of $1,056 from The Ability Experience and donated this grant to AbilityFirst – Long Beach. The Pi Kappa Phi brothers of this chapter hope to continue and expand their volunteerism with AbilityFirst – Long Beach and continue the proud legacy of helping people with different abilities and changing Southern California for the better.