"Last week, it was all Greek to UB"

The smell of paint in the Student Union last Monday morning meant only one thing: the start of Greek Week. Whether you hate them or love them, the sororities and fraternities on campus made their presence known.

Displaying pride for their organizations, Greek members painted their allotted windows at the front of the union, brushing on the opening scenes of Greek Week 2006.

All 47 Greek organizations affiliated with UB were involved in the weeklong celebration, and the groups' members, who make up four percent of the total UB population, proudly displayed their respective letters on various colored sweatshirts, tees and baseball caps.

"We want to showcase Greek life at UB, to promote it on campus and show how big it is," said Nicholas Colacicco, president of the Inter-Greek Council (IGC). "Greek Week is supposed to bring all the Greeks together."

Colacicco, a junior art major and member of Alpha Sigma Phi who has been a part of Greek Week for several years, planned the week's events with the help of Maggie Bach, vice president of IGC and a member of Delta Zi Omega.

Tuesday brought a chicken wing-eating contest, a new event this year. Sigma Pi took first place, gobbling up the competition.

That afternoon IGC hosted a philanthropy event titled "AGD Singled Out" for Alpha Gamma Delta, modeled after the MTV show "Singled Out." Through the process of elimination, one guy and one girl from a Greek organization each "singled out" one person to go on a date based on a written description of the participants' appearance and personality. The proceeds from the $3 admission fee for "AGD Singled Out" went to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.

"People were really great about it," said Donna Graham, a senior theater major and Alpha Gamma Delta member.

Wednesday brought the annual toga contest, famous for its half-nude Greek members.

"Double Dare," Thursday's new event, involved trivia questions about UB, Greek life and the Buffalo area. There was also a poker tournament that evening; proceeds from the games were donated to the Roswell Park Cancer Institute.

The bad weather on Friday forced the scheduled keg toss to be cancelled, but the BBQ Chiavetta's chicken dinner went on as planned.

At the end of the week, Pamela Stephens-Jackson, director of Greek Affairs, deemed the event a success.

"It's a celebration of Greek life, that's what Greek Week is," said Stephens-Jackson. "Each year they've gotten better."