A local fraternity did its part to make the holidays brighter for a group of children who otherwise may not have had much for Christmas.

For the second consecutive year, the brothers of Sigma Phi Epsilon at UTM gave their time, money and effort to host a Christmas party Dec. 15 for the children at Youth Villages in Dyersburg. While this is the fraternity's second year of hosting the Christmas party, this year they teamed up with the sisters of UTM sorority Gamma Kappa Pi.

The night began with a dinner provided by the people at Youth Villages for the children, their foster parents, and everyone who assisted in the night's festivities. Afterwards, the children participated in games organized by SigEp members. Tucker Leigh orchestrated a "Bring Me" game. In this game, an item would be named and whoever brought that item first would receive a prize. The children went all over the room looking for the items. It was a blast for everyone involved.

After the games, the fraternity and sorority members gave everyone a musical treat by singing holiday tunes. Many of the children joined in cheerfully, especially to "Santa Claus is Coming Town." The group topped everything off by singing a rousing rendition of "The Twelve Days of Christmas."

Finally came the point of the evening that all of the children had eagerly awaited: The opening of presents. The walls of the building were adorned with presents stacked up nearly 3 feet high.

When their names were called, the foster children would go sit on Santa's lap as their gifts were delivered. Each child got to keep a Polaroid picture that was taken with Santa while receiving the gifts. Santa was played once again by SigEp member Tony Beal's father, Anthony. Each child was given a stocking from Youth Villages, and the presents came from SigEp, GKPi, and various other people from the Dyersburg area.

"There was not one unhappy child," said Matt Muehlberger, one of the head planners for the party. "What makes this event so special is the knowledge that you were able to make a difference in the lives of the children at this event, who are our future."

Youth Villages is an organization based in Memphis that helps ease the burden placed on foster parents and the children for whom they care.

The fraternity was provided with a list of children's names and the gifts that they would like to receive.