Kappa Phi Alpha hosts a ‘Spirit of Service’ presentation on heroism

This past Monday night in the Rainbow Center, the brothers and sisters of fraternity Kappa Phi Alpha hosted William Xu, who gave a “Spirit of Service” presentation on becoming a hero, and how one could do their part to improve the lives of those less fortunate than themselves.

The running theme of the presentation was determining what exactly a “hero” is. Xu both explained and demonstrated the various attributes and traits that heroes embody, backing each one up with a short contextual anecdote relating to his own life, which seemed to bring a sense of realism to his examples. His presentation can be summed up by the set of ideas that everyone has the potential to help others, and to reach out and improve the world. That through our service, we not only help those in need, but create an everlasting chain of paying that kindness forward to others, in what he referred to as immortalizing one’s legacy.

“Imagine what you can do,” Xu said, “if you just challenge yourself by getting out of your comfort zone and helping others. You can make the world a better place.”

Audience reception to the presentation was generally warm, judging by the applause upon Xu’s closing statements. As Nick Lau the current president of fraternity Pi Delta Psi and a 6th-semester business management major put it, “The whole presentation was very inspiring. It really touched on some issues that most college students wouldn’t consider, and gave us direction on, for the future, how to find the path to following some of the ideas that he [Xu] touched on. The stories about his personal experiences were really inspiring.” When asked if he had often thought about these things before, Lau responded, “Yes, but at the same time no. It’s always in the back of our minds, but now it’s really coming to our attention.”

As for Xu himself, he is an alumnus of the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) as well as the former Chapter President of Pi Delta Psi, and is currently pursuing a career in International Criminal Law. He has either lead, or participated in, multiple community service organizations, both at RIT and since graduating in 2010. Of note is his building of the organization “Project 5%” which sought to give the 5 percent of Asian Americans in the nation a voice, by getting them registered to vote. He has also travelled to India in order to assist those who combat human trafficking of women.

Following the presentation, a small reception was held, where delicious red velvet treats were sold in an effort to raise funds for the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, or, NAPAWF.