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THE ABILITY EXPERIENCE

The Ability Experience was established in 1977 by Durward Owen, the then Executive Director of Pi Kappa Phi, and Thomas Sayre, an artist who designed a play unit for children with disabilities. Their collaboration resulted in Pi Kappa Phi's own philanthropy, making the fraternity the only national fraternity to have its own nonprofit organization.

To date, The Ability Experience has raised over $15 million to benefit people with disabilities and other organizations with a similar purpose. Over 1500 volunteers have participated in the organization's Journey of Hope, Gear Up Florida, and Build America events, which raise over $600,000 every year.

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Our brother and president Danny Lowery is preparing for The Ability Experience's Journey of Hope this Summer, where volunteers embark on a 4,000 mile bike ride across America!

What We Do
Fundraising

Every few weeks, we host events such as Pie-a-Pi Kapp on UCSD's Library Walk to raise money for The Ability Experience and other organizations like it. At our last annual War of the Roses event, we raised over $3,000 for The Ability Experience. As our chapter has grown, we aim to raise $10,000 from War of the Roses 2022. 

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Awareness
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Volunteerism
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We empathize with people with disabilities through shared experiences. By reaching out to organizations such as Noah's Homes, we get the opportunity to spend time with people with disabilities and help those who work there with miscellaneous tasks.

We believe in the abilities of all people. By using people-first language and pulling together the UCSD community through events like Spread the Word to End the Word, we help create a culture that is more safe and friendly for people with disabilities.

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