The family of 18-year-old Anthony Blas, Cal State Fullerton student who died on Sept. 13 following an unaffiliated fraternity event, created a GoFundMe page on Thursday to help cover funeral costs and to help spread awareness about the dangers of unaffiliated fraternities.
“Our hope is to work with lawmakers, educators, and communities to push for stronger awareness and education for incoming college students, especially freshmen, about fake, underground, and unrecognized fraternities and organizations,” reads the GoFundMe page created by Gianna P.
Blas was dropped off at the St. Jude Medical Center unresponsive, and according to the Fullerton Police Department, was declared dead at 12:07 a.m. According to the preliminary investigation, alcohol seems to have been a factor in the death, but the full autopsy will be released after the investigation, which could take up to six months.
The fraternity Blas had attended identifies itself as Delta Chi. They have been unaffiliated with CSUF since 2021 after violating multiple university policies, including hazing and conspiracy to haze.
“We hope to take Anthony’s name and his memory to lawmakers and advocates and ask for stronger education and awareness, so that another young person and another family doesn’t have to experience this kind of unimaginable loss,” wrote his family on the GoFundMe page. “Anthony’s life mattered. His future mattered. And we want his memory to help protect other young people.”
Their goal was to raise around $10,000. As of Sept. 29, they’ve exceeded their goal, raising $13,115 across 175 donations.
CSUF recognized National Hazing Prevention Week last week. On Sept. 18, the Dean of Students Office sent a campus-wide email reaffirming the commitments of CSUF’s Fraternity and Sorority Life, maintaining safe and healthy learning environments and condemning relations to unrecognized organizations.
“We condemn actions that jeopardize the safety, health, or well-being of any member of our community because such actions are inconsistent with these values,” reads the email. “When concerns arise, we agree that we have a shared responsibility to speak up, seek help, support one another, and to take appropriate action to protect our community.”