Bringing adults back to childhood, members of Phi Mu seesawed for a philanthropic cause from Friday to Saturday.
Phi Mu traditionally spends Blue and White weekend raising money for the Children's Miracle Network by seesawing for 48 hours in front of the Allen Street gates, but this year they had to stop at about 32 hours.
Vice President for Programming Alicia Rowland said the sisters' safety came first, and the weather made the seesaw unsafe.
But she said they still raised a substantial amount -- about $650.
While the weather shifted back and forth between rain and shine, sisters came prepared with rain gear and warm clothes. Some even rode the seesaw holding their umbrellas.
Rowland said the sorority encountered students, alumni and passers-by asking to ride the seesaw. Rowland said it was a great way to reconnect with alumni of the sorority and raise money for a good cause.
Will MacCallum said he went downtown several times to ride the seesaw.
"It seemed like it was going to be pretty fun. I was living up my childhood again," MacCallum (freshman-chemical engineering) said.
Rowland said most of the sorority members had four- to eight-hour shifts during the weekend.
"I had the wonderful 12 a.m. to 3 a.m.," Rowland said. "I love that shift. I love being out there at that time. Because the bars don't close until 2, you just get to meet so many different characters."
MacCallum also enjoyed people watching while he was riding the seesaw.
"There was this really drunk guy that got on, and one of the Phi Mu girls was still on there and he almost flung her off," MacCallum said.
Rowland said many of the people who came out had their pictures taken on the seesaw, and she even met a couple who come back every year to have their picture taken.
Phi Mu member Melissa Graesser (sophomore-psychology) said early Saturday included meeting with children who wanted to ride the seesaw.
"They were cute. They were really excited," Graesser said. "Sometimes you have to ride with them when they're too small,"
Graesser said seesawing was the most fun during times of high pedestrian traffic, when passers-by would ask what the seesaw was for and if they could ride it.
"A lot of people say it makes them feel like a little kid again," Graesser said.
But Graesser's favorite rider was a man who rode the seesaw with his guitar and serenaded the sorority sisters.
"A lot of people take notice of what we're doing," Graesser said. "We try to engage with people in the street to let them know what it's for."
