There are numerous lights that illuminate the Bryce Jordan Center during THON. Phi Kappa Theta may outshine them all. In the upper corner of section 104, the fraternity’s letters, lined with LED lights, stand out throughout the arena.

“We saw Boulevard’s letters light up last year,” explained fraternity member Cooper Walsh. “And we have a bunch of engineers in our house. One of our kids said, ‘Oh that’s simple, you just have to get a line of LED’s and a battery.'”

“Last year we had the cardboard cut outs,” said fellow member Zach Panos. “This year we went all out.”

On Amazon, for only ten dollars, the brothers ordered strips of LED’s and got to work placing them on their letters.

“They come with a remote and you can switch the colors,” said Walsh. “You have two batteries on the top to power it.”

And, unlike many fraternities, they don’t force their new pledges to hold their letters for all 46 hours.

“Everyone wants to hold the letters,” he said.

Panos agreed. “It’s a fun way to stand out,” he said. “It’s a fun way to get people involved. You can have arts and crafts and stuff like that, but we have this. It’s fun for the girls because girls like to hold the letters too.”

Phi Kappa Theta is paired with dance group Whiplash. Together, they have five people dancing in THON.

About the Author

Ben Berkman

State College, PA

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