Written by Courtney Dodd
I had random roommates. My friends from high school lived in different dorms, and I was starting sorority recruitment the very next day. At this point I had a summer camp vibe about it all. I did not feel as though I was going to have to attend classes and do homework. For the first time in my life I didn’t have my parents looking over my shoulder. Recruitment week was a very exhausting time. We had to get up before sunrise, plaster our faces with makeup and go try to impress girls we hoped one day would be our sisters. As the week came to an end and it was bid day eve, I had butterflies in my stomach about my decision and if I had made the right one. That next morning we got up and met with our Gamma Chis and headed to the Greek Theatre. Looking at that shiny gold envelope with the name of the sorority I would forever be a part of was nerve wracking. The countdown started and I could feel my hands shaking as we approached the final number. I shredded that envelop and was thrilled to see I had Delta Delta Delta on my bid day card. Being a part of such a great sisterhood has made all the difference my freshman year. I have made so many wonderful memories and I have met my lifelong friends. Our philanthropy is one I hold very dear to my heart. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is a very worthy philanthropy I hope to be involved in for the rest of my life, and one day I hope I am a pediatric oncologist there. This past November we visited the hospital, and we saw a dad who was playing with his son in the new wing dedicated to Tri-Delta. As he looked up as us he mouthed the words “Thank you.” He then turned to his son and said, “These are the girls that help make your treatment free for Mommy and Daddy.” I have never felt more touched by anything in my entire life. I knew from then on that St. Jude is where I want to work. Tri-Delta means so much to me in the social aspect of my life but it is also so much more.
