Fraternity and sorority members who run, jump, limbo and ride tricycles for charity on the Diag today will be able to meet the children who benefit from their games, during this year's Greek Week.

The annual event raises money for several national and local charities during two weeks of activities and contests. Last year, Greek Week donated $36,000 to Camp Heartland, a Minnesota-based outreach and camping program for children infected with HIV and AIDS, out of about $40,000 raised from sponsors, donations and Greek system participation fees, LSA senior and Greek Week spokesman Dan Fanton said.

Kids from Camp Heartland will be on hand to participate in and judge today's Greek Week events. They will speak about their experiences tonight at 7 p.m. in the Power Center in an AIDS awareness presentation titled "Journey of Hope."

"With a lot of charity programs, we see there's not much contact with the recipients, and with Greek Week we try to change that to make as much contact as possible," Fanton said.

Money not donated to Camp Heartland will be divided between the Coach Carr Cancer Fund, the New York Firefighters 9-11 Fund, the Boys and Girls Club of America and Students Promoting Eating Disorder Awareness and Knowledge.

SPEAK co-president and Social Work student Lauren Victor said Greek Week is donating proceeds to the organization this year for the first time because members of the Greek system have come to realize how much they are affected by eating disorders.

"Living together in close quarters with a lot of girls (in sororities) promotes a kind of environment of competition," Victor said. "That environment really cultivates the problem."

SPEAK is a student group that provides support for people who suffer from eating disorders and teaches others how to recognize and confront victims of those disorders. The money raised by Greek Week will help the organization better disseminate its message, Victor said.

Apart from the donations to charity, LSA sophomore and Interfraternity Council spokesman David Jira said Greek Week creates a greater sense of community between participants because a fraternity and a sorority are paired as a team for competition in activities.

Each team must also participate in a sexual assault prevention workshop, which creates bonds by showing fraternity members are willing to enter a discussion on assault, he said.

The games on the Diag and the Journey of Hope presentation are the main events today. A contest for the title of Mr. Greek Week 2002 will be held tomorrow at 7 p.m. at the Power Center. On April 1, participants will gather at fraternities on State Street for more games and will hold a spelling bee and lip sync contest that night. Teams will conclude Greek Week by singing and dancing in Hill Auditorium at 6 p.m. on April 3. Blood drives will also be held throughout this week and next at the Michigan Union.

Fanton said the general public is welcome at Greek Week events.