Pre-medical fraternity Phi Delta Epsilon hosted their annual Anatomy Fashion Show in the MacVittie College Union Ballroom on Sunday Nov. 4. Various student organizations volunteered to model for the event. The proceeds were donated to the Golisano’s Children’s Hospital in Rochester (Josie Kwan/assoc. photo editor).
Elaborate body paint, an array of student organizations, cheerful music and an excited crowd. The Phi Delta Epsilon Pre-Medical Professional fraternity hosted its annual Anatomy Fashion Show on Sunday Nov. 4.
This event brought the student body together, encouraged students to learn about the various bodily systems and raised money for the Golisano Children’s Miracle Network in Rochester.
This Fashion Show appealed to audiences across the board, from those with artistic ability, students who are involved in various on-campus organizations and people who were simply seeking to learn more about the different features of the human body.
Some of the student organizations involved in the event were Royal Lady Knights, Theta Chi, Geneseo First Response, Lacrosse, Swim, Alpha Delta Epsilon, a Capella groups, Bhangra and others. Each group was assigned to a different body system group and each student was painted by artists of the college.
As each group strutted the stage, PDE Vice President of Programming junior Julia Merante briefly described the bodily system and its significance, while the members of that specific group showcased their system and interacted with the audience. Some of the bodily systems mentioned were the circulatory system, the digestive system, the immune system and the muscular system.
The Golisano Children’s Miracle Network supports children who are in need of health care and helps fund money for doctors to discover life-saving cures for children who may have life-threatening conditions.
As a way to honor the GCMN and to add a personal touch to the event’s purpose, a speaker discussed his grandson’s experience with the hospital and the ways in which this network impacted his grandson. Each profitable feature of the event went toward funding for this network to support patients and contribute any amounted generosity.
“[The purpose of the event] is to raise money for Children’s Miracle Network. [The Miracle Network] started in Florida and has been going, I think ever since the early 2000s,” Merante said. “So, this is an event that all chapters of Phi DE are mandated to create, it’s our biggest fundraiser of the year. Again, all proceeds go specifically from us to Golisano’s Children’s Hospital in Rochester.”
Merante addressed how she was able to collaborate the work between the artists and body system members.
“Regarding groups and how I got them to volunteer, I basically just texted all my friends that I knew were in an organization and told them to get people,” Merante said. “Some of them fell through, others were like super excited to do it, so it was just a matter of getting 10 solid groups and then after that I sent out this mass email, got a bunch of painters and just kind of mashed them together.”
For some participants, presenting a system while strutting on stage in front of an audience caused fear; however, with the comfortable atmosphere and the social relations established between the members of the groups, participants felt immensely comfortable.
Communication major junior Olivia Zambri, who was involved in the group with the endocrine system, spoke on her experience in this fashion show.
“My housemate Julia [Merante] … asked me to be in [the show] and at first I was like ‘oh my God, no I cannot do that’ because I’m a very shy person and I’m not outgoing at all, but it was a lot of fun to get painted” Zambri said. “Obviously it’s a little uncomfortable being basically naked, but it was a lot of fun and I got to know all the people in my group. Going on stage was really nerve wracking, but it’s Geneseo and everyone is so nice, so it was really easy to do.”
Political science major first-year student Mildred Nyarko enjoyed the artistic aspect of the show.
“I actually really liked [the event],” Nyarko said. “The whole painting and the whole idea of it, it’s very different because I’m not used to that at all.”