I knew that Greek life was a pretty big thing at DePauw when I enrolled, but that was about it. I didn’t know if I would go through recruitment—I thought maybe not. I vaguely remembered seeing the Alpha Chi Omega crest embroidered on a pillow and stamped on a stein in our house. But at that point, I didn’t understand what a sisterhood was all about. My mom was an Alpha Chi at Purdue University, and once in a while she would talk about her experiences. Although I realized that DePauw also had a chapter, I didn’t understand for quite sometime how amazing it is that we are the Alpha chapter.

That winter, I returned to Alpha Chi for Preference Round, and during that time (much of which I spent trying not to cry), one line stuck out to me the most. A senior spoke, saying that Alpha Chi is the place where all the women encourage her to be the best version of herself she could be. Throughout my childhood, my mom would use this very same phrase to encourage me. In that moment, I felt her there with me despite her physically being a 3-hour car ride away.

The time between Bid Night and Initiation Night was a whirlwind of fun and memories and love. My mom is a full-time nursing student and extremely busy, but she always wanted to know how everything at Alpha Chi was going. I never even thought that she would be able to come to my initiation, so I never mentioned it. Then she surprised me on the night I officially joined the sisterhood of Alpha Chi Omega. When she showed up everything became so much more meaningful than it already was to me. I got to share this special moment with my mother and join her in a sisterhood that had brought so much positivity into her life—and now we get to revel in the joy together that is Alpha Chi Omega.