NATIONAL NEWSLETTER OF GAMMA SIGMA SIGMA NATIONAL SERVICE SORORITY
PERSPECTIVES Volume 56, Issue 2
www.gammasigmasigma.org
SPRING 2010
Gamma Sigma Sigma Announces Relief Effort Initiative In the wake of the disaster in Haiti, many members of Gamma Sigma Sigma expressed an interest in helping the small island nation. Since January 12th, many chapters, colonies, and individual members have donated money, supplies, and food to assist in relief efforts. Because of the members’ willingness to reach out during this time, the National Board of Directors of Gamma Sigma Sigma announces a new policy geared toward disaster relief: GSS C.A.R.E.S. (Collaboration to Assist in Relief Efforts through Service).
“It is situations like this that remind me why we are such a great organization and the impact that we make nationally and now internationally.” —Keli Connor, National President
On behalf of Gamma Sigma Sigma, a donation of $5,000 was sent to the American Red Cross to assist with the Relief efforts in Haiti. District VIII donated $800 and many other chapters contributed through collecting food, supplies, and materials. A number of chapters also have planned events to raise money for Haiti Relief, and countless members have individually donated.
Through GSS C.A.R.E.S., members, chapters, and districts are encouraged to come together to make a difference in situations of natural disaster. Surpassing the effects of the earthquake in Haiti, the natural disaster in the country of Chile affected millions of people. As our country pulls together to support those in their time of need, members are encouraged to turn to the American Red Cross to find ways to assist earthquake victims.
For more information on GSS C.A.R.E.S., please contact Keli Connor at president@gammasigmasigma.org.
Photo Credit: Talia Frenkel/American Red Cross
PERSPECTIVES
SERVICE
PARTNER
Page 2
SPOTLIGHT
By: Emily Marshall
The American Red Cross, one of Gamma Sigma Sigma’s national service partners, provides relief to victims of disaster and helps people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies. The American Red Cross helps victims of house fires, homelessness, and other disasters. In fact, they respond to over 150 house fires every day! You might be familiar with blood drives sponsored by the American Red Cross. Did you know that every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood? Half of the nation’s blood supply is collected by American Red Cross volunteers. They provide all of the resources and assist with set up, organization, and recruitment of donors. They also provide service to the Armed Forces by serving as a lifeline for deployed military members, allowing them to communicate to loved ones back home during emergencies. The American Red Cross also provides social services, emergency travel, financial assistance, and mental health support for returning troops and their families. You can find at least one active chapter of the American Red Cross in every state; some states have over 25 chapters! Visit their website at http://www.redcross.org/where to locate the chapter closest to you. There are many different opportunities to volunteer with or donate to the American Red Cross. Depending on your community needs, you might do some of the following with your local chapter of the American Red Cross: • Fundraise and donate to the Disaster Relief Fund. • Build disaster supply kits for schools, work places, and homes. • Work with children and families to develop a Family Disaster Plan. • Fundraise and donate to the International Response Fund (you can designate your donations to help a specific disaster). • Donate blood by finding and registering for a blood drive online at the American Red Cross website or helping them host a blood drive on your campus or in your community. • Attend a community disaster education presentation. • Enroll in CPR, Lifeguard, First Aid, First Responder, or EMT training to instruct Americans on first aid, CPR, swimming, and other health and safety skills. • Become a trainer so you can educate members of your chapter, school, and community. • Organize a fundraiser with teens from the babysitters training class. Host a parent’s night out and take donations for the American Red Cross for watching their children. • Host a fundraiser such as a golf outing or silent auction. • Become a volunteer swim instructor and teach lessons for children who cannot afford it. • Serve on the board; the American Red Cross is governed by a board of volunteers. As you can see, there are many ways to help the American Red Cross. Your service program would definitely be diverse while serving this organization. They help hospitals, shelters, child care centers, recreational camps, schools, YMCAs, community members, soldiers, workers, disaster victims, and many more. Don’t hesitate to get involved. Contact your local or national headquarters today!
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IN
YOUR
SPRING
2010
PERSPECTIVE
Members wanting to send a question for this section of Perspectives can send it to info@gammasigmasigma.org. One question will be selected to respond to in each edition. Dear National Board of Directors, I recently graduated from my chapter, and I would still like to help out the chapter whenever I can through service, attending meetings, or helping with programs and events. Are there any restrictions with my participation?
Participation of alumni with a collegiate chapter or colony is addressed in the STAFF, but here’s some important points for you to keep in mind when considering helping with the chapter. 1. 2. 3. 4.
Alumni may not be members of a collegiate chapter or colony. If alumni choose, they may make a financial donation to the chapter. Alumni may not vote, make a motion, etc. Alumni are not allowed to participate in the membership-in-training (M.I.T.) programs of a collegiate chapter or colony. This includes planning and executing M.I.T. meetings, being "bigs,� planning and executing ceremonies, etc. Alumni may be invited to events such as rushes, inductions, and activation ceremonies as guests. 5. A collegiate chapter's or colony's president may invite an alumni to attend meetings or participate in service projects or events. Note that Chapter Consultants, Chapter Advisors and NBD members do not need an invitation to attend, but as a courtesy, the President should be notified of the visit. Further information may be read in the STAFF. The intention of these sections is to allow our collegiate members to learn leadership, planning, budgeting, time management and other skills while running their chapter/colony program. The NBD, consultants and advisors are in place to help guide and encourage. Information that the collegiate groups receive must be consistent. That will be accomplished by using the persons mentioned above as resources, along with publications/documents such as the STAFF, National Bylaws and their own Standing Rules and Bylaws. Alumni are encouraged to attend celebrations, participate in joint service projects and other chapter activities. However, alumni MUST be invited by the collegiate chapter or colony and need to respect the chapter's or colony's way of conducting these events. Please remember that you are a guest. Judi Mecsics, Alumni Director
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PERSPECTIVES
ACTIVE • • • • • •
ALUMNI
COLONIES
Arrowhead Reactivating Alumni Chapter (Duluth, MN) Central Florida Alumni Colony (Central Florida) Magnolia Alumni Colony (Mississippi) Omicron Alumni Colony (Tallahassee, FL) Serenity Rose Alumni Colony (Cypress, TX) Tarheel Alumni Colony (North Carolina)
ACTIVE • • • • • •
COLLEGIATE
COLONIES
Delta Theta Reactivating Chapter Zeta Theta Reactivating Chapter Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Colony Buffalo State College Colony Pennsylvania State-Erie Colony Auburn University-Montgomery Colony
Congratulations to the Eta Lambda Chapter at Madonna University for becoming a chapter!
Congratulations to the Epsilon Lambda Chapter at Alabama State University for becoming a chapter!
POINT
OF
VIEW
OF
A
COLONY
MEMBER
By: Ranita Williams, Membership Director
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to start a new chapter from scratch? Read about Candice Wheaten, a junior Business Management major at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale and current President of the Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Colony, founded in June 2009. I found out about Gamma Sig through a member of Alpha Phi Omega from a different chapter. I was inspired by Gamma Sig because I loved that there was no way you could put a box around the sorority. There is a wide range of people, nationalities, and region…and all of that was formed through a bond of service. It was something that I knew SIUC did not have and could make a major difference on this campus: a "fresh and new" concept for people. I also wanted to be able to immerge myself in the community by doing service both on and off campus. Being in a colony is a lot of work! This is not something for those that do not like to put in hard work. It is a rewarding experience because each time we are doing something that we put a lot of planning and effort into. My advice to anyone trying to colonize at their school is to do your research first and make sure that Gamma Sigma Sigma is the best decision for you. If you really believe in something and love it, you will give it 110%. Remember the core of Gamma Sig is SERVICE! Everything that you do should circle around service and helping others to enjoy service as much as we do.
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TARHEEL
SPRING
STATE
ALUMNI
2010
COLONY
The Tarheel State Alumni Colony invites you to join their team in Race for the Cure 2010! The colony created a team to walk in the Race for the Cure on June 12, 2010 in Raleigh at Meredith College. After walking at Salem College last year and raising over $500, they decided to up their goal this year to $1,000. If you would like to donate or join their team, go to www.komennctriangle.org/komen-race-for-the-cure and search for their team: Tarheel State GSS Alums. They would also like to invite Gamma Sigs to visit their website for recruiting, service, and family events at www.gssncalum.webs.com. OMICRON
ALUMNI
COLONY
The Omicron Alumni Colony celebrated the holiday season with gifts of service. They donated Christmas presents to local families and children and continually send care packages bi-monthly to our troops overseas. In 2010, the colony devoted a day to commemorate the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by serving meals to the less fortunate and volunteering with a local children’s program. The members of the Omicron Alumni Colony are excited to host one of the 2010 Leadership Conferences and are excited to see everyone attending. They extend an invitation to all within the Tallahassee area to join them in their effort to serve the community and hope to receive their chapter charter in the upcoming months. EPSILON
LAMBDA
The Epsilon Lambda Chapter at Alabama State University held a kickball game, “Kick Out Kidney Disease,” in October 2009 with members from Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. to raise awareness about kidney disease. Representatives of the Alabama Kidney Foundation attended and showed their support for the cause and their skills in the kickball game. Students participated in the festivities and received information on the foundation. While the newsletter was in production, Epsilon Lambda received their charter. Congratulations!
PERSPECTIVES
EPSLON
Page 6
UPSILON
The Epsilon Upsilon Chapter at the University of Florida finished the fall semester as a unified chapter with high goals to strive towards for spring semester. With 11 chapter members, they contributed to the community by serving in projects with other organizations on campus, such as Field Day for the Youth with Alpha Phi. They attended the District Spirit Day hosted by Epsilon Nu. The members placed service as a high priority and averaged over 25 hours each for the fall semester. They also donated funds and support to the National Kidney Foundation and contributed food and clothing to the homeless. EPSILON
PSI
The Epsilon Psi Chapter at Tennessee State University is planning a silent auction to raise money for the National Kidney Foundation. They also organized a service week to collect donations for Haiti. The chapter enjoyed their 52 Flavors social in March where they handed out ice cream and smoothies. DELTA
ALPHA
IOTA
The Alpha Iota Chapter at the University of MinnesotaDuluth puts on an annual service project for March of Dimes during the Spring semester. They collect baby photos of members of the men’s and women’s UMD hockey teams. The photos are displayed at the university and during the hockey games for fans, students, families, and the community to donate money to the photo with the cutest baby. Upon donating money, they are entered into a drawing where they may win tickets to a UMD hockey game during the season. At the end of the fundraiser a winner is announced and the proceeds go toward the March of Dimes Foundation. The chapter loves this fundraiser because it is a fun way to raise money and involve the community with both the service project and the university.
CHI
The Delta Chi Chapter of East Carolina University worked hard on their fall service projects, including, Adopt a City Street in Greenville, North Carolina where the members worked together to beautify their community. They also are excited about future plans with a new service project involving Project I.M.P.A.C.T., Girl Talk with the Girls of Gamma Sig, where members mentor local high school girls and discuss teen issues and coping with issues positively. They hope to create a bond with the teen girls and help them become brighter women. They also plan on recruiting new members for the first time in two years! The Delta Chi Chapter is ready to help Gamma Sig grow and look forward to a bright future! BETA
SIGMA
The Beta Sigma Chapter at Western Kentucky University recently initiated seven new members, and they are ready and excited to volunteer! The chapter participated in the Beta Sigma Café, a monthly service project where they feed residents at Salvation Army café-style. They also participated in the 10k Classic, cleaned up a highway, volunteered at the Kentucky Cancer Program, and made old fashioned toys with a local group of Girl Scouts. Beta Sigma had a Black History week during February and planned a week called Service Mentality. Beta Sigma is very excited to meet their perspective members!
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GAMMA
SPRING
2010
KAPPA The Gamma Kappa Chapter of University of Tennessee-Knoxville welcomed 60 new members last fall. During their rush, themed Gamma Sigs and the City, prospective members learned about Gamma Sigma Sigma, completed a service project, and attended a “mocktail” party to celebrate their intent to pledge.
In October, Gamma Kappa won second largest sorority participating in Race for the Cure and over 50 members walked in the Light the Night walk. They also made I Spy bottles for the local children's hospital, competed against other organizations in the Vol Challenge (placing second for their service with the Salvation Army!), and continued their weekly work with various organizations in and around Knoxville. Gamma Kappa geared up for a busy Spring semester with weekly service projects, participated in several philanthropy events in the Knoxville area, and hosted a leadership conference for Gamma Sigma Sigma in March. DELTA
SIGMA
The Delta Sigma Chapter at Samford University enjoyed serving their community in Fall 2009. The members prepared a Fair Trade meal for the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and the Student Farm Worker Alliance during their tour of the South fighting for fair food. During their fall retreat, members packed Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes and created ornaments for the local Children’s Hospital. The chapter collected over 700 cans for the local food bank while trick-or-treating for canned goods on Halloween, wrote dozens of letters to members of the Air Force stationed in Iraq and other servicemen, and collected hundreds of tubes of lip balm for local homeless shelters. They also organized a Christmas party for children at the downtown public library, complete with gifts distributed by Santa himself! GAMMA
ALPHA
The Gamma Alpha Chapter at Florida A&M University is celebrating their 40th anniversary. They recently hosted the District 7 Spirit Day and the Leadership Conference this Spring. Along with the Omicron Alumni Colony, Gamma Alpha co-sponsored Tallahassee’s first KEEP (Kidney Early Evaluation Program) Screening on March 20, 2010. Fully aware that service never sleeps, they are currently fundraising for Relay for Life, an all night marathon that raises funds and awareness for The American Cancer Society, as well as co-hosting Sleep-out for the Homeless, an event to increase consciousness of the steadily growing homeless population in the Tallahassee, FL area. Keeping in mind local youth “at risk,” the chapter tutors and mentors school age children bi-weekly in hopes to positively impact their lives. Gamma Alpha will initiate new members, continue current projects, and looks forward to exchanging ideas to better their chapter in service, friendship, and equality throughout the year!
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PERSPECTIVES
COLLEGIATE
SPOTLIGHT:
COURTNEY
HOLDER
Courtney Holder, a member of the Gamma Kappa Chapter at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, was nominated by her chapter and was crowned Miss Homecoming 2009. She also helped her chapter place third in the overall University of Tenessee Homecoming competition (paired with the brothers of Beta Theta Pi). In addition to her commitment to her college, she also participated in service events put on by the chapter.
Do you know a collegiate or alumni member who deserves to be recognized in a future issue of Perspectives? Contact the Perspectives editor at perspectives@gammasigmasigma.org.
ALUMNI
SPOTLIGHT:
MARTHA
LLOYD
By: Judi Mecsics, Alumni Diresctor
Ms. Martha Lloyd, an Alumni-at-Large member, was a founding member of her collegiate Gamma Sig chapter before becoming a founding member of the Bluegrass Alumni Chapter. She held the leadership positions of Expansion Coordinator and Regional Director, served on both the Membership and Alumni Committees, and presently is a member of the Service Committee. She also served on the Hospitality Committee at conventions and received the Outstanding Alumni (now the Powell) Award in 1983. Martha actively volunteers as a bell ringer for the Salvation Army, purchases gifts for the needy from the Angel Tree, and supports her church’s many projects, including collecting box tops for education and soup labels. She assisted with the Fire Department’s fundraising project to help mentally and physically challenged children in Kentucky and Southeast Indiana. She also supports Relay for Life, the Retired Teachers’ Association, the Socks for Soldiers projects, and helps at polling sites during elections. Well-known in and around her small town of Radcliffe, KY for her devotion to her beloved WKU sports teams, Martha supports WKU at events funding scholarships at the university by selling raffle tickets, working the concession stand, and helping at the golf scrambles.
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ALUMNI
SPRING
2010
SECTION
By: Judi Mecsics, Alumni Director
Occasionally I get emails from collegiate members who want to know exactly what the Alumni do. They are concerned that the Gamma Sig they know and love—an organization of individuals dedicated to service, friendship and equality—is “different” at the alumni level. Rest assured that the core values of the organization do not change when Alumni status is achieved. I had the opportunity to read all of the reports submitted by our Alumni Chapters and Colonies and am continually impressed by the enormous variety of projects done by them. Our alums support their communities by serving food at soup kitchens, helping to stock food bank shelves, and collecting/sorting clothing for the needy and blankets for the homeless. They encourage their community’s youngsters by acting as mentors, tutors in schools, sponsoring holiday parties for foster children, and scout and church youth group leaders. Alumni members are found walking, running, and jogging to raise funds for the Leukemia Society, American Cancer Society, Lupus, March of Dimes, AIDS, Muscular Dystrophy, and MADD. Behind the scenes of these events, our alumni members man the registration tables, give out certificates, provide/serve refreshments, and encourage the participants. Among other organizations, the Special Olympics look forward to the help Gamma Sig alums provide each year. We have Gamma Sig alumni help community police and other agencies with programs that teach safety to the public. Others visit the elderly in nursing homes and play games, read, sponsor holiday events, hold sing-a-longs, or bring pets in to share with the residents. Many of the chapters are collecting socks/underwear for the military troops, cutting coupons for military families overseas, saving Campbell soup labels for education, greeting card fronts for St. Jude’s Ranch, and pop tabs for the Ronald McDonald House. These are just some of the outstanding projects we participate in. Alumni find friendships in their Gamma Sig chapters and colonies. The members may have relocated far from their collegiate location, but know they will be warmly welcomed into any Gamma Sig group. The diversity of ethnicities, life experiences, ages, and careers all make each chapter or colony uniquely rich. Each member adds to the mix and makes the group special. The members bond over celebrations of life, whether it’s a new job, engagement, or vacation! The members share sadder experiences, as well, such as illness, economic difficulties, or the loss of a loved one. There is support and understanding to be found in the group. Many chapters or colonies make sure there are dinners, movie nights, game nights, or weekend retreats scheduled so there is ample opportunity to get to know each other. Our alum groups celebrate Founder’s Day, have holiday parties, and celebrate the anniversary of the chapter, often holding a rededication at this time. Some chapters sponsor a Spring Tea or other event to welcome new graduates and enjoy doing interchapter service projects. So, collegiate members, this is what you will find as you move on to the Alumni ranks of Gamma Sigma Sigma. You’ll find friends there ready to welcome you and your ideas. These are people you can count on and will be friends for life. We look forward to seeing you!
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PERSPECTIVES
BLUEGRASS
EMPIRE
ALUMNI
The Bluegrass Alumni Chapter walked in the LupusNow walk last September in Louisville, KY. Thanks to raising money with Lollipops for Lupus, the chapter received an award for raising the most money as a group. They also helped the American Red Cross Haiti Relief in January by collecting Ziploc bags containing personal items, including soap, shampoo, and toothbrushes. In February, the chapter handed out Valentine’s Day cards to the children at Kosiar Children Hospital and also participated with March of Dimes and Relay for Life.
STEEL
CITY
ALUMNI
The Empire Alumni Chapter has been busy celebrating service in their lives. Two of their members, Sharon and Lori Tedford, welcomed two boys into their family via adoption, the ultimate service project! During the Christmas season, Keli Connor made a call to service to feed the homeless a lunch on Christmas day in Sanford, NC. Thanks to the efforts of Keli’s family and the Empire Alumni Chapter, over 600 meals were prepared! The chapter would like to extend a special thank-you to the Central New England and Nutmeg Alumni Chapters for helping with this project and look forward to participating in future joint service projects. Although chapter members are far apart in distance, they are close in heart and in the spirit of service.
ALUMNI
The Pittsburgh-based Steel City Alumni Chapter has been busy since becoming a chapter at the National Convention in July. They began volunteering at Global Links, a non-profit organization that sends medical supplies to third world countries. After the recent disaster in Haiti, the chapter believes that supporting this organization is more important than ever. Members have also cut, collected and sent thousands of coupons for the “Coupons for Soldiers” program. At their last meeting in January, members made fleece blankets to donate to local organizations. More members have joined this chapter and the bonds of service and friendship continue to grow in the “Steel City.” CENTRAL
NEW
ENGLAND
ALUMNI
The Central New England Alumni Chapter met in December to make holiday cards for military members. Alumni members include (L-R) Jennifer Spears, Patti Spears, Jo Charest, and Pat Saul.
TWIN
CITIES
ALUMNI
The Twin Cities Alumni Chapter met on Saturday, December 5th at the Prairie Lodge Senior Housing to decorate their two holiday trees before meeting for lunch, a meeting and an exciting gift exchange. A fun time was had by all!
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PLANNING
SPRING
AN
2010
EVENT
By: Aurelia Spaulding, Marketing Director
1. Decide on the name and theme of the event. 2. Select a committee to assist and assign responsibilities to committee members. Be sure to establish a signup sheet of responsibilities for the night of event. 3. If date isn’t already chosen, choose the date. Be sure to check other school, organization, and sports calendars to make sure your event doesn’t conflict with other scheduled events since they might lower your attendance. 4. Reserve a location for your event. When looking for a location, check for size of the location, special setup requirements, and if there will be a cost for the reservation. 5. Plan and review a budget. The budget should be as specific as possible and include both revenue (donations and sales) and expenses (food, decorations, rental space, public relations materials, etc). 6. Write a letter asking for any donations and send out invitations for participation. Remember to send a thank-you note to all who participated or donated to your event. 7. Discuss possible speakers and/or participants; contact them in order of preference. 8. List publicizing areas and locations. Prepare ways of public relations and advertising, including social 9. media, flyers, banners, posters, emails, informational booths/tables, and word of mouth. For more coverage for your event, write a news release for all media (radio, TV, newspaper) and send the release out at an appropriate time. Once the materials are prepared, post and send out all public relations materials. 10. Get everything you need, do not wait until the last day for anything except picking up food. 11. After the event, evaluate how the event went. Keep track of how many people attended, what worked and what didn’t work, if the event was worth it, and any changes to make for the event in the future. CONTACTING
GAMMA
SIGMA
SIGMA
Gamma Sigma Sigma • PO Box 248 • Rindge, NH 03461-0248 • 800-585-7508 • 216-803-3065 (FAX) Perspectives Editor • Jen Jones • 3625 Duval Rd, Apt 1633 Austin, TX 78759 • 305-519-1968 30TH
NATIONAL
CONVENTION
Mark your calendar for the 30th National Convention taking place July 13th-17th, 2011 at the Westin Washington Dulles in Herndon, VA! Visit the Convention page on our national website at http://www.gammasigmsigma.org/convention.html for updated information on the 30th National Convention or contact Karen Kerr at convention@gammasigmasigma.org with any questions you may have.
The deadline for submissions for the Fall 2010 issue of Perspectives is September 10, 2010. Send all submissions to perspectives@gammasigmasigma.org. You can find the submission form on the website!
GAMMA
SIG
CLASSIFIEDS
For Sale: Gamma Sig tote bags Tote bags, seen at left, are $10.00. Contact Jo Charest for more information! aa@gammasigmasigma.org
Have a fundraiser you want to advertise? Want to send special membership announcements and recognitions? Contact Aurelia Spaulding, marketing@gammasigmasigma.org
WWW.GAMMASIGMASIGMA.ORG/MERCHANDISE.HTML
Gamma Sigma Sigma National Service Sorority C/O Karen Kerr, Database Coordinator 5683 Gold Creek Bay Hickory, NC 28601
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