University students 'push' to raise funds for St. Jude

Members of Alpha Tau Omega raise funds Tuesday afternoon as fellow members push the trademark wheelbarrow down Lake Road toward downtown Dyersburg. [Click to enlarge]

Members of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity at the University of Tennessee at Martin pushed through Dyersburg Tuesday in an effort to raise more funds for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

This year marks the 20th annual ATO Wheelbarrow Push, which every year has benefited patients at St. Jude. The organization has raised more than $465,000 since the fund-raiser's inception in 1986. This year's goal is $100,000, said ATO member Brent Simpson.

"This is just something we started back in 1986," Simpson said. "Our goal this year is $100,000, which we're pretty close to."

The ATOs had raised nearly $75,000 prior to the primary push this week, Simpson said, and they had pulled in approximately $92,000 when they reached Dyersburg.

The entire fraternity works throughout the year to raise the money, Simpson explained. All efforts lead to the primary push during the university's spring break.

"It's almost like a yearlong event, but our actual wheelbarrow push is once a year," said Simpson.

During the year the ATO members donate their time in several fund-raising efforts. They hold small mini-pushes in Martin before the main event in March, Simpson said. In addition, each of the fraternity members solicits donations in his hometown from businesses and family. Some members also donate blood platelets at St. Jude in Memphis, earning $750 for each donation. Each member who makes the donation also must make the donation of time, including a drive to Memphis and two hours for the blood platelet procedure.

"It's a two-hour procedure," said ATO member Jay Taylor. "You watch a movie [during the donation]."

While other UTM students may be enjoying spring break at the beach, an average of 30 ATO members spend their vacation time traveling from Martin to Memphis in the annual push. The push begins officially in Union City on Monday and the ATO members eventually push their way to St. Jude in Memphis, arriving on Thursday morning. At that time the students offer their donation check to St. Jude, meet with hospital staff and patients, and take a tour of the hospital.

"Every spring break we wheelbarrow for St. Jude," Simpson said. "We know those kids down there need us."