Columbus, Ohio

    I had such a fun time in Ohio! I visited the chapter at Capital University. They are such a fun and outgoing group of women. I was lucky enough to be there during their first formal recruitment as Alpha Sigma Alpha! It was so much fun! I love recruitment!

Recruitment

    It was three days of crazy, but we all survived. It was a little hectic the first few days because we were all learning what to do. The women were so awesome and going with the flow and being flexible. We definitely pulled through and did so amazing at recruitment. The new members were all amazing. I was so proud. Like a momma duck when her ducklings learn to swim! I hope that next semester I get to take part in a few more recruitment visits because they are by far some of my favorites.

The Town

    The town was a very nice town. The school was very small, but the city of Columbus was huge! It was a lot of fun, but the women informed me that there were armed robberies happening in the neighborhood! That was definitely a little frightening. There was even an incident where a pimp was following two women down the street! I guess human trafficking is a huge issue in Ohio. Who would have guessed?! Although these scary things were happening around the city, the women were confident we would all stay safe and they kept me well informed of what to look out for. I survived!

Inspired

    One of the women in this chapter truly inspired me. She is so amazing. While being a full time student and part of a sorority, she has had time to found a non-profit organization, One Life, to help people find causes that they are passionate about. She is the CEO of her own company! How amazing is that?! At such a young age. She is very passionate about human trafficking and giving back. Last year, she saw a woman being beaten outside of a hotel one night. She pulled up to the pair and approached the two people. The man fled the scene, and this young woman took the woman being beaten with her and helped her to take care of her wounds and fed her and clothed her. It turns out this woman was a prostitute and the next day she called an organization to help her recover and escape the sex trade. This sorority woman has changed people's lives! I was very inspired by her stories and her ambition. I hope her organization is very successful! Check out her website: www.seehelptell.org

Throwing up the crown after Preference Night

Me with the chapter after our week of hard work!

Millersville, Pennsylvania

    My trip to Millersville was quite an eventful one! I was so busy the week flew by! I had such a fantastic time visiting the chapter at Millersville University and spending time with the alumnae there. I cannot wait to return in late October / early November. It is a treat to visit such a wonderful group.

The Town

    Millersville is a tiny town, very similar to the town I went to school in. The campus was very quaint. It is was under renovations, because they are remodeling and adding on to the library. They are also beginning to remodel the dorms and make them in to suites! I am so jealous! I was able to see a lot of the town during my visit. It is crazy how quickly a small town turns into farmland. It is so beautiful and reminded me a lot of Pittsburg State University. I definitely miss my friends down there, but I know they are having a great time without me!

 

The Women

    What a great group! I have not laughed as hard as I did during my visit for such a long time. They truly made me feel at home. Some of them have already made plans to hang out with me when I return! I am so excited! They want to take me to the second largest mall in America and to Hershey, Pennsylvania! How fun! While I was visiting this chapter we help a Phoenix degree for the new members that had just accepted their bids. I love ceremonies, so it was a lot of fun to get to attend a Phoenix degree on the road. I was glad that I could be there to welcome the new members as well. I want to make sure they are excited to be lifelong members of such a great organization.
    We also had a sisterhood movie night, which turned in to quite the event. We had reserved a room in the student center, but discovered we were unaware of how to work the technology. Unfortunately, all of the technical help had left for home. After a half hour of trying to work the technology, we gave up and started a game of charades! It was so fun and we all had a great laugh. It goes to show that we can make our own fun!
   Another day, two women and I went apple picking! It was so much fun! We had a great time picking apples and walking around the apple orchard. It was such a beautiful orchard with tons, and tons of apples. I am so glad that I go to have that experience with them.
   

This is after the Phoenix degree

 

Sammie in her footie pajamas for our sisterhood movie night. She made me laugh like crazy!

 

Ladybug cupcakes! Yumm

 

Two women from Epsilon Kappa and I at the apple orchard

 

Me picking an apple!

Live it. Talk it. Dream it. Work for it. (I have officially done all four! :) )

 

 

Extra

    I continue to learn more about myself as I continue on the road. I have learned that I am able to have uncomfortable discussions. I can think on my feet (for the most part), although I am still trying to perfect this skill. I am pretty good at relating to others and being understanding. I am working on my teaching skills right now. Sometimes I struggle explaining things through speech; I feel as though I am better at explaining things on paper. I am definitely working a lot on my speech and conversation skills with this job! I am nervous at what else I am going to learn about myself, but hopefully I will learn my strengths and my shortcomings, learn to continue to grow, and learn to accept that I will always have faults but I will never let them define me.



Harrisonburg, Virginia

    James Madison University was such a large school! It was so fun to get to see the difference between my alma matter and a large state school.

Recruitment

   I was at James Madison University during their fall formal recruitment! It was AWESOME! The women were so on top of things and had everything organized before I even arrived. I was so excited to experience this large recruitment. With 1,000 women going through recruitment, hoping to call a sorority their home, I was thrilled to watch the women chant and have conversations with all of the women.
    I will admit I was in shock when the women began chanting for the first time. The women all stood within the house while three women stood outside the front door chanting. But this wasn't your average sing-song chanting. The women were yelling at the top of their lungs to ensure that the women awaiting to enter their home could hear what they were saying. As the whole house shook with excitement and spirit I was all smiles! Everyone had such positive attitudes the entire week and the women were so energized and excited to be receiving new members this semester. I was so happy that I could witness this amazing recruitment. I was even allowed to tour other houses during the skit night! I loved getting to see how other sororities put together creative skits.

The Women

    The women were nothing but friendly during my visit to JMU. They were all so kind as to drive me around town and pick me up when I needed anything. They even gave me a recruitment shirt! I was so excited! We all know how much I love t-shirts :) Everyone was very welcoming. I loved having lunch with them and hearing about their lives and the university as we strolled through campus to grab lunch or dinner. The campus was huge by the way! They also had the best campus food I have ever eaten! There were so many options and some of the best desserts ;) I was one lucky gal to get to visit James Madison University.

The Town

    The town of Harrisonburg was not the largest town, but it was very homie. I loved the atmosphere and the fact that they had some of my favorite stores and restaurants ;) I would love to visit James Madison University again someday. The town was mostly made up of the university and was divided by a highway, but I had a great time there! I almost wish I would have looked into attending school there! (Just kidding, because then I wouldn't have met the wonderful friends I did in Pittsburg, KS. Love you guys!)

Some of the officers and I in their chapter room

Travels

    I will say that I seem to not have the best luck with flying, but I still enjoy it! This time I was traveling out of Charlottesville, VA. When I arrived to the airport I found a long line of passengers waiting to receive their HANDWRITTEN boarding passes. All of the computers had broken down! After a long wait and help from the fantastic staff, I was able to finally board my plane with my healthy breakfast of pretzel M&Ms. I landed in Atlanta, GA to hike across the airport, which is miles long in case you did not know, and take a seat before boarding my flight. I took a short nap on the plane and safely arrived in Philadelphia, PA to start my week with the wonderful women of Millersville University! Oh, and I almost forgot. My hairbrush was missing after the TSA search my suitcase :( Apparently, Dad thought it was funny that I was so concerned, but it was my favorite hairbrush! Luckily, those are easily replaced!

Random

    I have been reading the book The Last Lecture and I would recommend this book to everyone. It has truly inspired me to start pursuing my dreams no matter how silly they seem. The man who wrote this book was amazing and I am so glad that my mom bought this for me! I think it is definitely a book for all ages too, young and old.

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined."

-- Henry David Thoreau

Radford, Virgina

    I had a great time at Radford University! I was so excited once I got there! The women were very welcoming and the university was absolutely beautiful. While I was there I kept thinking this would be a great school to get my Master's at. I started of my visit by eating at a local restaurant called Sharky's. It was delicious! The fried pickles were probably the best I have ever eaten. I spent time at an apartment on "dark side". "Dark side" earned its name because it has fewer street lamps and street lighting than "light side". After spending some time with the women there, I moved to a townhouse in "light side". The women I lived with in both homes were fantastic! They were so nice and I enjoyed getting to know them. The woman in the town home had just bought a puppy golden retriever! He was the cutest little thing. We had fun playing around. Although it wasn't so fun stepping in his pee on my last night.

The Town

    Radford is a small town, almost like the one were I went to school. The largest chain restaurant there is Applebee's. I loved eating at the local food places! They had a delicious sushi restaurant and a delicious bakery that made the best cookies! Yumm! There was a main road in town that had a "downtown" feel with all of the local shops and food areas. The campus was a large part of Radford. All of the students lived in old homes with character, which were beautiful, or in apartment buildings.
    I enjoyed my stay and the places they had to eat on campus were very cool! I ate at Au Bon Pain, which was a yummy sandwich, soup, and salad shop. I also ate a lot of salad from Wild Greens. And I cannot forget all the Starbucks I drank! It was wonderful! I do love coffee more than I probably should. When I was staying at the townhouse, I had to hike up a very steep hill. It was about a ten minute walk and quite the workout, but I actually enjoyed the walk! I was able to forgive myself for not going to the gym. :)

Sisters

    I had some amazing conversations with the women from Radford University. They are so amazing and have done so much to build their chapter up. I was so impressed with all of their hard work. The women also have strong support from their advisor, who has really helped them. I cannot wait to return to Radford to spend more time with the women and get to know them even better! I truly appreciate their hospitality and their energetic spirits. And, I will admit, I am excited to see the puppy again! He was just so darn adorable :)

Little Levi! What a cutie :)

My beautiful view of Radford, VA from the townhouse on a hill

 

Travel

    I got to take a short drive through Virginia with two women from Radford. We drove through some areas with beautiful mountain scenery on our way to meet with women from James Madison University. I definitely regret not taking photos. We stopped at a little zoo to meet up. They had pictures with baby tigers! I am jealous that I didn't have time to walk through the zoo. I definitely love the view in Virginia. Everything seems to beautifully green :)

Lynchburg, Virginia

The Town

    The town of Lynchburg has a lot of history. It is a historic battle site, the battle of Lynchburg. One of the advisers, Cherie, took me to lunch in the downtown area at the best sandwich shop! We had a fantastic time. She even took me to visit the grave site of one of the sorority founders, Louise Cox Carper. It was very cool to see  I loved getting to see the beautiful brick homes that had so much character. Lynchburg was small town, but not too small. The campus was beautiful as well! The campus has so much on-campus housing. I was amazed at all of the options the women had.

The grave site of Louise Cox Carper, one of the five founders.

 

Time with the Women

    The women at Lynchburg College were so awesome! We had a great time hanging out and watching movies, TV shows, and crazy YouTube videos! If you have some free time, this is the video that was stuck in our head the whole time I was there: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJeG-GGH114 It is funny, but kind of weird! One of the women who lived in the chapter house made us chocolate chip cookies EVERY DAY! They were so delicious I could not resist! She even made some in the shape of my initials (photo below). I love staying with all of them. They referred to each other as "squid" and by the end of my visit I became an official "squid". I was so happy to get to know them and I hope to see them all in the future! What a fantastic second visit! I am still trying to get used to the humidity of Virginia. The temperature on my phone never seems to be accurate, or at least it is not what I expect.

 

The cookies they made especially for me! Yumm :)

Look at this cute little kitten! Angie had taken in two kittens as a foster mom from the animal shelter. I knew my little sister Jaclyn would be jealous!

 

I'm off to Radford, Virginia to meet a new group of women and continue my journey on the road!



Marshall, Missouri

    I had such a great time at my first visit. I went to Missouri Valley College in Marshall, Missouri. The women there were amazing! The school was a major athletic college and majority of the students were there on athletic scholarships. I was very impressed at their capabilities of managing a college sport, school work, work, and a sorority! I was very blessed to have met the women their. They were all so friendly and kind.

Town

    The town of Marshall, Missouri is a very small town. They had an Applebee's and all of the fast food restaurants, but every thing else was small town. We ate at a small town restaurant named Luke's. They had amazing burgers! I love small town food places! WalMart was where everyone went to kill time. The campus was a large part of the town, and it was beautiful. All of the buildings were brick and the campus was small, so you could walk the entire campus in five to ten minutes.

My Stay

    I stayed at the chapter house at Missouri Valley College. Many of the women lived in the house. I was pretty spacious. I even had my own room! We had a sisterhood event at the house which was a lot of fun. We played Apples to Apples, which was a riot. Afterwards we walked to Dairy Queen for some ice cream! While we were their, one of the members shoved ice cream in her friends face, and while she was laughing she leaned back and dunked her hair in my sundae. We all had a good laugh! Luckily I was finished. I told all of the women that I would remember them forever! Your first visit as a leadership consultant is one that you will always remember!

This is me with a few of the women in front of their chapter house.

 

Flight to Virginia

    My flight out of Missouri was definitely an interesting one. Well, first we had to leave at 3 AM to get to the airport! I arrived around 5 AM. The airport was packed at 5 AM and the line to check luggage took 30 minutes. After that I had to wait in line for security. I almost missed my flight! Once I was on the plane, a baby was crying right behind me and kept kicking my seat. The poor mother was trying to quiet her down. Luckily, she fell asleep once we took off. The sunset was beautiful to watch as we flew through the clouds. I wish I would have taken a picture. Once I arrived at DC I had a nice little wait. The airplane that I boarded had no air conditioning! We were all sweating to death! The flight was delayed 30 minutes so that they could stop one engine and start the other to pull in some cool air. Once I arrived at Charlotte I had missed my flight to Roanoke, and had to wait an hour for the next flight. The good news is it gave me time to grab some lunch! I was starving! The flight to Roanoke was nice and short and the view was beautiful from the plane. When I got my luggage I was disappointed to find the zippers had been ripped off of my front pocket and there was a small tear. Unfortunately, I didn't know you had to talk to the luggage people immediately. I was tired and just wanted to get settled in. I have officially learned my lesson though. After a long day, I had finally arrived at Lynchburg, Virginia! I was ready to start the week!

Last Day in the Office

    It is our last day in the office and we are all excited to start our journey on the road, but sad to leave each other for such a long time. We are all told to trust our training and believe in ourselves because we are smart, young women who are capable on taking on all of life's challenges. Well, I choose to believe it! I couldn't believe how quickly I bonded with these five amazing women. They are all so intelligent and all have amazing talents. Each woman has taught me something different and I hope to carry those lessons with me on the road. I know we will stay friends for many years, and I couldn't be more excited!

We wore all black to "mourn" our last day together until November.

Sisterhood

    I have been reading the posts on Facebook from my chapter sisters, about their sisterhood and excitement during recruitment. It has brightened my week to hear all of those wonderful things from them! It does make me miss my chapter and wish I could see their bright, beautiful faces, but I have also accepted that I have started a new journey. I will always have their sisterhood and love to support me in my travels and what life has to throw at me. I am such a proud alumna and I hope they continue to stay strong in their sisterhood and remember what the sorority is all about!

See you in October!