coordinating volunteers and planning the event to overseeing fundraising efforts, she did it all. Now studying leadership studies and psychology on the opposite coast, she has passed the baton to two young women back home who were eager to step into larger leadership roles for Be the Difference. Now 19, Piper still dedicates time each week to the event, balancing her responsibilities with coursework and extracurriculars, including her involvement in Alpha Phi. With a heart for helping others, spreading kindness and compassion in every interaction, it’s no surprise that Piper serves as her chapter’s director of philanthropy. Drawing on her Be the Difference experience, she has thrown herself into the role, making a tangible impact.
PIPER WYMAN (Gamma Alpha-San Diego State) A Humanitarian Heart
What fills Piper Wyman’s (Gamma Alpha-San Diego State) cup is helping others. While many teens her age were exploring self-expression and testing boundaries, a then 16-year-old Piper was channeling her energy into something bigger than herself: founding an annual community event in her hometown of Middletown, New Jersey. In 2023, she launched Be the Difference, a suicide awareness and prevention walk held each May in honor of Mental Health Awareness
Month. In just three years, the event has raised nearly $35,000 for the American Foundation
“I’m especially proud of
successfully hosting our annual Crush Week,” Piper says. “Despite some uncooperative
for Suicide Prevention’s New Jersey Chapter — a testament to Piper’s leadership and her community’s heart. With this year’s walk set for May 31, Piper already has her sights set on an even bigger milestone. “This year, my goal is to bring our total funds raised to $50,000,” she shares. “I truly believe me and my community can do this together.”
weather, I stayed positive, planned events for each day and my chapter showed up every time. I know this is just the beginning, and I hope to continue making my chapter proud.”
Proud doesn’t even capture it. Piper has left a lasting mark on her Middletown community, where she is known as a fierce advocate for suicide prevention and awareness. Within her Alpha Phi chapter, her dedication to women’s heart health and philanthropy that empowers women shines just as brightly. While she’s still exploring which professional path she’ll pursue post-college, one thing is certain: Piper will continue making a positive impact on the lives of her communities. “I’m interested in so many different things that I’ve struggled to define what career I want to pursue,” Piper says. “All I know for sure is that I want a career that brings happiness, helps people, guides people and brings them together.”
The inspiration behind Be the Difference is deeply personal. Piper experienced the heartbreak of losing not
one, but two friends to suicide. As she saw more lives in her community affected in the same way, she realized this was an epidemic. She turned her grief into action. “I just knew I wanted to make a difference in my town,” Piper shares. “My dad encouraged me to reach out to our town to see what I could do. I spoke with Middletown Mayor Tony Perry, who helped me bring this idea to life. I told him I wanted to be the difference in our town, and that’s how the name and the walk came to be.” For the first two years, Piper managed nearly every aspect of the walk’s day-to-day operations. From
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