A $516,652 frat party? Fund-raiser about UNC flag protest closes. But questions remain.

A group of UNC fraternity brothers photographed protecting an American flag as it was being pulled from its pole at a Chapel Hill protest has drawn nationwide praise and an online fundraising effort promising an even sudsier award:



A “rager” of a party worth more than half a million dollars.

Some of the money could be diverted to charity causes, a GoFundMe organizer clarified as the window to donate closed at midnight Thursday with $516,652 raised.

Here’s what we know about who is behind the fund-raiser and what all that money could actually go.

The protest and the flag

Protesters set up tents on the Chapel Hill campus starting last Friday, forming a “Gaza Solidarity Camp” that drew hundreds of people and demanded that UNC disclose investments related to Israel and divest from them.

Police broke up the camp Tuesday morning and charged 36 people, including 13 students. Later Tuesday, a physical clash broke out when protesters returned to the site on the campus main quad. Protesters removed the large American flag there and replaced it with a Palestinian flag, leading to an hour-long struggle.

During that struggle, several students were photographed holding the American flag off the ground, standing in a ring. Many of them were members of UNC’s Pi Kappa Phi fraternity.

“Today was a sad yet empowering day at Chapel Hill,” wrote Guillermo Estrada in a post on X. “When I walked to class, I saw the Palestinian flag raised on our quad flag pole, and was immediately upset at the act that these ‘protestors’ had made.”

Sen. Ted Budd, the North Carolina Republican, shared a photo of the students holding the flag on X, formerly Twitter, and wrote, “Proud of these UNC students. Right on!”

The fund-raising for the ‘rager’

By Wednesday, a GoFundMe page appeared praising Pi Kappa Phi’s flag defense, calling protesters “an unwashed Marxist horde” and raising money to pay for a “rager” party in honor of the “triumphant Brohemian” frat brothers.

“Commie losers across the country have invaded college campuses to make dumb demands of weak university administrators,” the post read. “But amidst the chaos, the screaming, the anti-semitism, the hatred of faith and flag, stood a platoon of American heroes.

“Armored in Vineyard Vines and Patagonia, fueled by Zyn and White Claws, these triumphant Brohemians protected Old Glory from the unwashed Marxist horde — laughing at their shrieks and wails and shielding the Stars & Stripes from Soviet missiles.”

Originally, the post from John Noonan sought $15,000 — a total that would prove modest.

As post goes viral, money pours in

The plea for funds drew donations nationwide — one for $10,000.

“America, (heck) yeah boys,” wrote donor Bobby Phillips. “Here’s a case of Miller Lite from a thankful patriot in Indiana.”

Country singer John Rich wrote on X that he’d like to perform a free concert “for the boys who protected the American flag at UNC.”

The funding goal soon rose to $50,000, then $100,000. By 10 p.m. Thursday, the total had topped $501,000.

Three top donors — identified as John Clark, Adam Sinn and William Ackman — gave $10,000 or more. Others included former UNC basketball coach Matt Doherty, who expressed his appreciation for the students on X, and two donors who gave $1,776 each.

“We are overwhelmed by you glorious, Patriotic Americans who value good beer and great times,” the organizer said in an update on GoFundMe Wednesday evening. “We are in contact with multiple leaders from fraternities whose members helped defend the flag, including Alpha Epsilon Pi and others, in addition to Pi Kappa Phi.”

In a Thursday night update, Noonan said volunteers have offered to provide free entertainment and merchandise to give the fraternity houses — eight in all — “a world class party.” The organizers have also contacted the fraternities and UNC officials about a date, he said.

What GoFundMe says

On Thursday morning, a GoFundMe spokesman said the company’s “Trust & Safety Team” had reached out to Noonan for more information.

“All funds remain safely held by our payment processors during this process,” Cornell Wedge wrote in a statement.

“At GoFundMe, being a safe and trusted place to give and receive help is our top priority. We have a team of experts working around the clock to review fundraisers and work directly with organizers to help prevent misuse and ensure compliance with our Terms of Service. This process includes both a human review from our world-class Trust & Safety experts as well as technical tools designed to catch misuse.”

Wedge said the money, once processed, would be “released only to the person named as the recipient of the funds.”

“Before funds are transferred to the beneficiary, their personal information must be verified,” the statement said. “If any questions arise, our processors will hold the funds until the recipient is verified.”

Who will get the money?

On Thursday, the GoFundMe page was changed to say “John Noonan is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Susan Ralston.”

Ralston has deep conservative connections, having served as former special assistant to President George W. Bush and former deputy to Karl Rove, who was Bush’s senior advisor until Rove resigned in 2007.

Ralston resigned from her post with Rove in 2006, following a House ethics report showing she was a conduit for messages between Rove and lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who later pleaded guilty to conspiracy and other charges related to a corruption investigation.

Ralston was never accused of wrongdoing. She now is president of SBR Enterprises in Virginia, which specializes in public relations, event planning, and government and political consulting.

Ralston acknowledged being asked by GoFundMe organizers to plan the fraternity party when The News & Observer reached her by phone Thursday. She declined to comment about the fundraiser or the party.

WUNC radio identified Noonan as another former political adviser with conservative ties. Now a senior adviser with Polaris National Security, he is a former U.S. Air Force officer and also former senior counselor for military and defense affairs to Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton.

In addition to other roles, he served in two presidential campaigns as national security advisor to Gov. Jeb Bush and as defense policy adviser to Gov. Mitt Romney.

What the fraternity says

A national Pi Kappa Phi spokeswoman said Wednesday that the fraternity did not set up the fundraiser and is not endorsing it.

In Chapel Hill, the local fraternity said it didn’t know the organizers and was trying to contact them.

A few answers from the fund-raiser organizer

Reached through GoFundMe, Noonan originally referred questions to Max Meyer, a blogger who describes himself on X as a propagandist and westerner.

Meyer did not respond to an email Wednesday, but he effusively praised the fraternity and its flag efforts, posting about it on X:

“It was a fraternity alliance that defended the flag. I am in contact with all of the chads. And I’m on my way to North Carolina to bring the story to you.”

Noonan said in an update Thursday that a member of the GoFundMe team is working with the organizers to “ensure your donations do as God intended — to show these guys enough fireworks to blow their Oakley aviators straight off their faces.”

But not all of the money will pay for kegs and fireworks, he clarified Thursday night.

“Fraternities will also have input on sending funds to some great charities in their name, foundations that are consistent with the fundraiser’s patriotic theme,” he said in an update. “A transparent independent entity that will include a board of directors, as well as representation from the fraternity organizations themselves, is in the process of being established to keep true to donor intent.”

No word yet on invites.