The Girls Who Wear Pearls......

I have not told this story to many. But, blogging about it might finally give me some closure.

I am an Alpha Gamma Delta member. I was initiated in spring of 2010 to the Theta Chi chapter at Virginia Tech. I went through sorority recruitment the semester after I transferred in order to feel like I belonged somewhere. I wanted to gain friends for life and have positive college memories, although I had a short collegiate life at Virginia Tech (2 years instead of 4).

My rush experience: Virginia Tech does sorority recruitment in the Spring. That means all the girls attending recruitment come back to school a week early. There is a total of 13 sororities present on VT's campus and each have their own house in Oak Lane. Recruitment started on a Thursday night where every girl was grouped into a holding group number and met their Rho Gamma's. My 21st birthday was Wednesday so I was able to celebrate Wednesday night with my parents and friends for a bit before I had to head back to Tech bright and early the next morning. Let's just say my 21st birthday celebration wasn't the greatest of all the 21 birthday stories told, but to me my birthday was perfect for what I had going on. Enough on that.

Here is the breakdown of what events go on:
1. Friday: Meet and Greet (7 houses)
2. Saturday: Meet and Greet (6 houses) Ranking
3. Sunday: Philanthropy (Up to 10 houses; I only got 6) Ranking
Attend the first week of classes. Get Monday off.
4. Friday: Sisterhood (Up to 6 houses: I got 3) Ranking
5. Saturday: Preference (Up to 3 houses: I got 2) Final Ranking
6. Sunday: BID DAY!!!! (1 house)

That is the logistics of the events we attend. We had to walk around in the cold/wet days to stand outside a house to hand Rho Gamma's your index card to go socialize with girls. Seems easy enough. No, recruitment is exhausting for both sides (Sorority and Rushees). There were times where I had cried, my feet hurt, I wasn't in the mood to talk and wanted to give up. But I did not give up. Here is the part where this experience comes to a great story. During recruitment we had breaks in the holding house and at one of these breaks I met a girl named Chelsea. Chelsea and I instantly clicked as best friends and we spent times in the holding house talking about ourselves and when we weren't at recruitment we found times to hang out. She helped me with my outfits for recruitment. Instant best friends! Chelsea was a little upset because during the Preference Round she received only one house to go back to. At first, she was uneasy but decided not to drop out and see how the round would go. When we home after preference round, both of us were nervous and we hoped to receive a bid. Luckily, Chelsea and I were scheduled to receive bids from our Rho Gammas right after each other, I was first. I already knew what house Chelsea would be going to if received the bid, she told me even though that isn't allowed. (Shhh!! Don't tell). I received my bid, I was excited. I waited in the foyer of the building to see Chelsea. When I finally did see, she asked me what house I was going to. My response "Let's walk over to our house sister." Yes we were accepted into ALPHA GAMMA DELTA.

Alpha Gamma Delta:
Colors: Red, Buff, Green
Flower: Red and Buff Roses, Green Fern
Stone: Pearl
Mascot: Squirrel
Motto: Inspire the Woman, Impact the World

Chelsea, my maid of honor, and I were now apart of the Theta Chi chapter. Of course after new member stuff, dues, and other odds and ends I can't really tell you about. Soon after we go our bids to Alpha Gam we received our Big. We had a little ceremony of trying to guess which girl was getting which big sister. I was the last one in the line to receive my big. This is the day I met, Lisa!




V (L), Lisa (C), Myself (R)
Source: Facebook

All was going well in the sorority life. I was able to move into the sorority house pretty quickly and while I was still a new member. I moved in with my Great Niece, C and had a great time getting to know all the members before initiation. The only downside to the first semester was my Big was graduating, so we didn't get to hang out with each other more. Luckily, we still keep in touch. During the spring semester, another sorority got kicked off campus and their house was available. Alpha Gam eagerly took this opportunity and got this new house for us to have for the 2011 school year, little did I know this was going to cause a big downfall.

Fall semester 2010, 36 Alpha Gams moved into Oak Lane into a new house. We were thrilled! It was more beautiful, better set up and we were not attached to another sorority. All was going smoothly. In December, we had officer turn over for the next year and I was voted to be Vice President of Operations. Perfect! I was really looking forward to the 2011 recruitment to get more girls into our sorority. Hopes were high.

Spring Semester 2011. One word: DISAPPOINTED
I can't exactly say everything because their is confidentiality I have to maintain about my organization.
Recruitment was good. We only had about 40 members compared to the 100-150 other organizations had for recruitment. So we were exhausted and overworked. Bid Day came and we were surprised and hurt when we only recruited 9 girls. All that hard work and nothing! We had this new house, we were changing our thoughts and ways. Why were we unable to get members. In the fall, we got our voices out there to be heard. Still I had my hopes high and my dream/goal was to have a Little! I met K and she is the best little ever! This time we a small clue week to leave gifts to our new Little's before a reveal, right before initiation.

Myself (L), Kelly (R)
Before Spring Formals

K (R), Myself (L)
Reveal of Big and Little

Here is where things go bad. In April, an executive decision was made that Theta Chi chapter was going to closed after the semester. Alpha Gamma Delta was no longer going to be a sorority on campus. I still remember the ladies of Head Quarters saying the news in the great room where us members gathered. I was hurt and crying. Sisters were giving up our sorority. Sisters became inactive members and no longer wanted to associate themselves with the sorority. The friendships that were made were either broken or other alliances created. What happened to us? Girls became petty. I was apart of the very few members that were willing to fight till we had no option. We were defeated of course. I was disappointed that the sorority was not able to continue. I loved the girls and the organization. It was taken away from me right before I was graduating in the fall. I didn't have that home away from home anymore.

For my last semester I could barely stand wearing my letters on campus. Rumors were spread around about our sorority that weren't even true. No one really knew why we lost our charter; it was a numbers game in the end and we didn't have the numbers. We didn't get kicked off because we were the ugly sorority or because we did something stupid. What was left of our sorority, member wise, were now alumnae and hid from the world for the most part. No one wore letters and no one mentioned they were apart of it because I believe most of us felt embarrassed.

I'm not sure if we are still afraid to hid on campus. The last sisters are Juniors this coming year and soon all the members will be graduated. I now have found a new light from the situation I had gone through, Spring of 2011. I am researching involvement in an alumnae group or junior circle around me to be apart of. I am still proud to be an ALPHA GAM. But I do not wish anyone to go through the experience of having your sorority taken away from them.

Has anyone else had to deal with a tough let down in life?