Members of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity danced to music to stay warm Wednesday night into Thursday morning. While most K-Staters slept comfortably in their beds, these fraternity members slept outside in a cardboard shelter.

For 11 years, the fraternity has been participating in a program designed to raise awareness about the homeless. Members arrived at Bosco Student Plaza at 9 p.m. and stayed the night until sunrise this morning.

"Homeless people don't have the music and stuff like that," said DeMarkus Coleman, president of Phi Beta Sigma and senior in finance and marketing. "That was just to draw the crowd in."

He said weather was not an issue for them, but for homeless people who cannot choose where they sleep, it can be.

Coleman also said he and his fellow members would have been out promoting awareness even if the weather was bad.

Courtney Bimper, sophomore in open option, saw the event and decided to stop by. She said last year the fraternity held the event in the rain.

"It shows that community is important and if you stick together, you can make it through," Bimper said.

The fraternity accepted donations of canned food and clothing for the Manhattan Emergency Shelter.

Anything the members could collect to help people realize there are homeless people in Manhattan is important, Coleman said.

James Millsap, vice president of the fraternity and senior in agribusiness, said the members had a good response from students passing by.

"When they heard what we were doing, they were like ‘That's noble, let me help you guys out,'" Millsap said.

Fortunately, he said, there was a rave Wednesday night at the K-State Student Union. People going to the rave decided to hang out with the fraternity after the rave ended.

Phi Beta Sigma is historically an African-American fraternity, Millsap said. However, he said the fraternity welcomes all members and recently inducted Bill Clinton as an honorary member.