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Fraternity to hold Ushuaia bash

By Angela Fiandaca

Posted on Thursday, December 12th, 2002, 12:00 am

The University of Maine’s Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity will be offering students a last chance to let loose and have fun before finals with a Mardi Gras bash at Ushuaia’s.

The event will be held Friday, Dec. 13, at 9:30 p.m. Admission is $8 for people under 21, and $4 for those over 21. A donation will be made to a local charity from raffle ticket sales.

PIKE wanted to have a “blow off steam” and “just let loose” kind of event before the semester ends and before finals week, according to Mark Mercier, PIKE’s vice president of external affairs.

“We wanted an end of the year bash, and what better place to have it than at Ushuaia’s?” Mercier said.

PIKE brothers thought a pre-finals event was necessary for UMaine students at this hectic time of year.

“We thought it would be a good way to reward people for having worked so hard this semester,” John Belanger, PIKE’s fundraising chair, said.

The Mardi Gras theme is primarily to depict a fun and outgoing atmosphere where people can enjoy themselves, according to Mercier. Strands of Mardi Gras beads will be sold at the event for $1 per set. People are encouraged to come with their own array of beads as well, and those with the most beads will be eligible to win prizes.

A raffle also will be held at Ushuaia’s Friday. Raffle tickets are $1 each with all proceeds benefitting the Bangor Humane Society. The prize will be a Sony boom box with a 60 CD changer, according to Mercier.

“We wanted to couple the two events,” Mercier said. “A lot of times people separate fundraiser events and social events, but we thought it was important to group the two.”

This way PIKE can get a lot of people to learn about a significant local charity and hopefully support the humane society, Mercier said.

Any time an organization is able to participate in giving back to a community it is important to do so, according to Belanger.

“When we have the chance to take part in a great fundraiser and, even better, have the chance to give the money to a great organization like the BHS, the men of Pi Kappa Alpha feel that it is necessary to do so,” Belanger said.

“We have done many hours of community service this year, and this one is one that will not only help out a great cause, it will be a great time, allowing students to take a break from studying,” Dan Burgess, PIKE’s internal vice president, said.

PIKE members have few expectations for the event other than to attract a large crowd of students and have a great time before the semester comes to an end.

“We expect people to come down, enjoy themselves and hope that we host the event again,” Belanger said.

“We want people who never go to Ushuaia’s to check it out and people who always go to say ‘I never had that good of a time there before,’” Mercier said. “We think this is what people will talk about next semester. This is hopefully what will make them excited to come back to school.”

Burgess said the fraternity expects to be able to donate a substantial amount of money to the BHS, as well as meet new people who may be interested in joining PIKE and show an increased involvement with the campus.

“We want this to be the pinnacle of everyone’s semester,” Mercier said.