The nets have been cut down, and the University of Florida men’s basketball team is the new champion of March Madness. But the real winners this year are the three beneficiaries of Alpha Epsilon Pi’s Mensch Madness bracket challenge: NECHAMA, Israel ParaSport Center and Chai Lifeline.
This year, Alpha Epsilon Pi International Fraternity’s annual Mensch Madness Bracket Challenge, combining the excitement of the annual NCAA college basketball tournament and enhancing it with the spirit of tikkun olam (“repairing the world”) and philanthropy, raised more than $60,000 for AEPi’s Repair the World fund, one of the largest amounts ever raised in the 11-year history of the program.
More than 1,600 brackets were submitted this year, raising more than $60,000. AEPi at the University at Buffalo won this year’s competition, raising $7,505. Other top finishers were Elon University, American University, Indiana University, the University of Pittsburgh and George Washington University.
The undergraduate raising the most money was Brother Ari Goldstein from the University at Buffalo.
“During these most difficult of times for Jewish students on college campuses, demonstrating the importance of tikkun olam to our communities has never been more crucial,” said Rob Derdiger, AEPi International’s CEO. “Our Brothers are standing up to antisemitism and anti-Israel hate by doing what we, as a community, do best: doing good for the world. I’m very proud of the effort our students put in this year to raise these funds, and I congratulate our brothers at Buffalo for their winning effort.”