ALUMNAE CONNECTIONS

ALUMNAE CHAPTER & ASSOCIATION UPDATES

BALTIMORE ALUMNAE CHAPTER

Serving the greater Baltimore area, we hosted an End of Summer Cookout at a member’s home, attended concerts together, and went for wine tastings at local vineyards. We even have a virtual book club option for members who can’t attend the inperson events! In December, we had our annual Holiday Cookie Exchange, hosted by Alumnae Chapter Vice President Erica May Richards (Beta Mu 2010/Salisbury).

BIRMINGHAM ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION

The Birmingham Alumnae Association had a successful summer and fall. We supported the Birmingham Barons at our annual baseball outing in May. In June, Melinda Henry Oates (Gamma Gamma 1991/UWA) and Allie Ellis Mills (Gamma Gamma 2006/ UWA) attended Convention where our association received five Convention awards!

This fall we sponsored a Panty Drive for My Sister's Closet, helped the Gamma Gamma Chapter during recruitment, met for a casual dinner in town, and celebrated Founders Day with Sisters from the Gamma Gamma Chapter. During Founders Day of Giving, we also won the Alumnae Group Challenge! We wrapped up 2022 with our annual Christmas party.

BUFFALO ALUMNAE CHAPTER

Hi Sisters! It has been a busy and exciting year for the Buffalo Alumnae Chapter. Over the summer, we gathered together with family and friends for a Buffalo Bisons baseball game coordinated by our VP of Event Planning Christy Oliver (Sigma 2008/SUNY Buffalo State). In September, we gathered for our 'Welcome Back' meeting to discuss upcoming events and philanthropy opportunities.

In October, we connected with our collegiate sisters from Epsilon Mu/Buffalo and Epsilon Rho/SUNY Geneseo at the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk held at the Outer Harbor in Buffalo. In November, we celebrated Founders Day together and welcomed guest speakers from Dress For Success Buffalo and Bury the Violence - a local organization that assists women in domestic violence/abuse situations. We look forward to the new year ahead and strengthening our bonds of sisterhood in Buffalo.

Baltimore

CHARLOTTE ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION

The Charlotte Alumnae Association hosts multiple events per month – typically a more casual "drop-in" option for the more busy members, as well as other options that take a little more organizing. Recently we took a trip to a local arcade – a great event option to have fun with Sisters!

DETROIT METRO ALUMNAE CHAPTER

The Detroit Metro Alumnae Chapter has been up to quite a bit. We had our elections in September and enjoyed Founders Day with the Ypsilanti-Ann Arbor Alumnae Chapter. We adopted a large family for the holiday season and had our annual ornament exchange meeting. In 2023, we look forward to welcoming newly graduated sisters at our Cozy Sock exchange meeting and volunteering with the Delta Tau Chapter at Oakland University.

HARRISBURG/HERSHEY ALUMNAE INTEREST GROUP

Earlier this year, Sisters from the Harrisburg/Hershey area started an alumnae interest group. An interest group is formed to generate interest from Sisters before becoming a chapter or an association. Three alumnae in the area planned a summer social and partnered with Headquarters Staff to help market the event – they had a great turnout!

PHOENIX/VALLEY OF THE SUN ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION

We have enjoyed many activities this past year, including Coffee with the Taus, Sisterhood Bingo, brunch following a hike, and our Founders Day celebration and potluck luncheon. Our club members contributed to the Phoenix Alumnae Panhellenic by volunteering at the Charles Schwab Golf Tournament and collecting stuffed animals for A Mighty Change of Heart (which focuses on foster children in Arizona). We also celebrated our holiday brunch, a favorite of our Valley Sisters!

TIDEWATER AREA ALUMNAE CHAPTER

Our Alumnae Chapter has had a wonderful fall with our newer Sisters taking pivotal roles in our chapter. We started our year with a hot walk on the boardwalk for Dress For Success Virtual Power Walk. Next, we met in September at the home of Hannah Cook Bademian (Alpha Lambda 2008/Radford) and passed the yellow rose to see what each person wanted from our group. That is how we set our goals for the year. We also had a candlelight service for Hannah, who is expecting in January.

Our Sisters had a spooky time in October at the home of Elayne Goode Weinbrecht (Alpha Lambda 1974/Radford). We welcomed a storyteller and more new Sisters to our chapter. One Sister even traveled from Williamsburg to meet with us! We had Halloweenthemed desserts, goody bags, and a spooky story. Sisters brought 83 pounds of food to share with the food bank.

In November, we gathered for our Founders Day. We welcomed two more Sisters, Michelle O’Neill Johnson (Alpha Lambda 1988/ Radford) and Hannah, and prayed for two new alumnae chapter members who were sick that night. We honored our Founders from 1899, and our 13 Sisters who have entered “The Eternal Chapter” from our chapter since 1964.

Every Sister went home with yellow roses from Veronica Leitner Hill (Psi 1982/James Madison) and Kate Miller Brown (Zeta Tau 2010/Longwood). Each Sister was given a beautiful handmade anchor magnet made by Mary Elizabeth Askins (Alpha Lambda 2013/Radford). Our chaplain Melissa Day (Alpha Lambda 2001/ Radford) set up beautiful ceremonies for us. Alumnae Jen Cohen (Gamma Rho 2005/Seton Hall) and Kacey Rae Schaum (Delta 2006/IUP) ensured that our dinners were ordered and presented on time.

In December, we had a “Sisterhood Sunday” ornament exchange at Elayne’s home. See you all in 2023! Looking forward to a great year, and happy 123 years of Alpha Sigma Tau to all of our Sisters around the country!

Interested in starting an alumnae group in your area? Want to join one but aren’t sure how to get involved? Contact Ashley Smith Ried, Assistant Director of Engagement, at aried@ alphasigmatau.org or 317-613-7573, or visit alphasigmatau. org/members/find-a-chapter to learn more.

Detroit Metro

Harrisburg/Hershey Tidewater