Another AI Potential
 

:) Hello fellow GC's...
I would like to announce that I also am seeking a home as a potential AI. I began my quest at the beginning of June and believe me it has been a slow progress. I have had my heart set on a particular GLO since I was in high school. Unfortunately, the univeristy I attended did not have a chapter there so I waited for years to finally graduate and seek membership. I have my fingers crossed and hope everything is smooth sailing. I would like to applaud all of those seeking potential AI because "patience is a virtue."
~T~:)

YEA!!! Another PNAM from Texas. Where do you live? I'm in Fort Worth.

Best of luck - it can be verrrrrry sloooow but i know it is worth it in the end. The sisters here are very helpful, so don't hesitate to ask.

Lizz

Hi Tinydancer...I'm from San Antonio...the Alamo City!!:)

hurray!!!!!! welcome to gc and best of luck with your ai search!

Seconding what has been said...............

Good Luck!

And as Lizz said, let us know if we can help in any way.

Don't be surprised if folks worry you to pieces about where you are going or start making guesses. It's all in good fun. You don't have to tell until you are ready.:)

Best of luck to you! If I can offer one word of advice it would be....

RELAX!

Don't try to hurry things, and don't try to pressure people into making things happen for you. Patience is truly a virtue when it comes to this process, and with a little patience and a little faith, I'm sure you'll find a home.

Woo hoo! Another AI thread! We are in the same boat! Good luck honey! If you want to commisserate or chat, feel free to PM me!

Yay-- Good Luck!!:)

Edited to add: Welcome to Greekchat.:D

Best of luck to you from a fellow San Antonian! I wish you nothing but the best in finding your home. :)

Good luck! If you need any help, you've come to the right place!

well,
 

tell us all the details about how you arrived at this point -- like what university you attended that did not have a chapter of the GLO you wanted ( the GC sleuthers will then commence their sleuthing!!) and how you think things are going/will go -- no need to say the specific GLO although I know if you do email or pm any of the GCers here they will be more than happy to help! Right everyone?!:D
Good luck and welcome to GC and please keep us informed -- we LOVE rush threads and AI threads!! Woo Hoo!:D

YEAH TEXAS PEOPLE!!! You have certainly come to the right place to share your saga with us! Don't be a stranger, and ask all the questions...no matter how ridiculous you may think they are! We're here for you!

What school did you go to? I grew up in Dallas but went to school in Houston!

aj

Welcome to the club!

As you probably know, AI can be a long road, but I believe it's worth every minute of it.

Always glad to meet another PNAM!

Adrienne (PNAM-2003)
:D

Welcome, welcome, welcome! :)

As a PNAM, you are in good company here!

My big advice is always to acknowledge to yourself right upfront that this process could take a looonnggg time. You might get lucky and it may go quite quickly. Either way, just keep repeating to yourself that you need to be patient! :D

Best wishes!!!!!

PNAM,

.....Kelly :)

Welcome to Greek Chat! I've added you to the Roll Call Thread of Prospective Alumnae Initiates! ;)

don't hesitate to ask any of us questions ! we're all here to help each other out :)

TVC, Welcome to GC the Greatest Little Web Site in the World!!!:)

If your from Texas, that is alright!:D

If you ever have a question, ask and ye shal receive! You will get a TON of help from these neato peeps!:cool:

I am the worst about wanting to know who you are looking at as everyone will tell you!:(

But you will find, that I want NPM's to get Initiated so much!:)

Good Luck!!!!!!!!!!!!:)

Hi guys,
Thanks for your support! It's great to have everyone's back. I would truly love to tell what university I graduated from that did not have an existing GLO there but that would be unfair to those who are members to those existing GLO on campus. And who knows if it works out with the one I am pursuing and maybe end up AI with an existing collegiate chapter. I do want to say that I am VERY tempted to spill out the beans...:cool:

~T~

Good Luck! Make sure to give us details. And let us know if we can help along the way! :)

Good Luck TCV!

I'm currently sponsoring two PNAMs, and it has been a long road...let me assure you, it can be just as frustrating for the sponsors as for the PNAMs!!! My problem is, there is not collegiate chapter in my town, so we are waiting on the Pres of the collegiate chapter where they will be initiated to return from out of the country to sign their applications. ACK! I'm going crazy waiting b/c I can't wait to call them my sisters!!!

I hope your process is exciting and not too drawn out!

We are pulling for ya! We PNAMs gotta stick together!

http://geoparent.com/graphics/emoticons/woohoo.gif

Hey TCV, welcome!! I am so excited to hear your story!! Everyone on GC is extremely helpful in advice, kind words, etc!!

Good luck to you-I can't wait for you to share your story!!

Hey guys,
I thought I'd post some update news...well...still waiting. I hope to hear from the president soon 'cause I'm getting anxious:D

laters!!!
~TCV~:)

Keeping everything crossed for you!

This goes for all of the PNAIM!:)

Hey guys,
I thought I would just give you an update. I have been passionatley seeking A.I. with one particularly org. but things have been really I mean reaaallllllly slow. So I decided to go on with org. #2. I just emailed the org. and hope to get a response soon.
Now it's back to the drawing board.
(now I have to switch all my energy to org.#2:) )
Lates,
TCV

Don't forget to contact those of us here on GC if we are alums of the group you may be seeking -- we can help!:)

Hey guys,
I just got an email from the alumnae president and she asked what my availability is so that we can meet. I am so excited. I will let you know what happens. Wish me luck!!
~TCV~

WOO HOO! Good Luck and have a great time!

Good luck! We're all cheering for you! :D

YAY TCV! I hope you have a great time!

yay! Have you been able to meet with her yet?

Hi guys,
I am kinda in a bind. I am stuck between two GLOs for A.I.
Here the story...
I began my quest with group A in June. I emailed HQ who then passed me to the Coordinator. It took her quite a while to get in contact with the alum pres. After weeks of hounding for updates (hehe) she finally emailed me stating that she phoned the pres but has not heard anyything back from her but she went ahead and gave me the alum's phone number hoping I would have better luck. So I did (3 month period). Three days later I phoned her...no answer. So I left a message. The week after I phoned her again...no answer but left her another message. After two weeks had passed and no return phone call I gave up. So I began with my second choice (group B). I emailed the alum pres. and she emailed me within the week. She was thrilled that I was interested in her GLO. She asked me what time I was available to meet. I emailed her back with an anwer( which I am still waiting to hear from her).
Now this past weekend I get a phone call. It's from my first choice! I totally gave up on them and they totally suprised me. What happened was that she is no longer the alum pres. She seemed very nice and asked me questions about my persuit. She was delighted to give me the current alum pres phone# for contact. She also let me know that they were having some events coming up next week. I hope I get invited:)
Now the problem is that now I am gunho about both GLOs. I didn't mean to pursue both at once.
What I am planning to do is that if I meet with both in different occasions I will decide who accepts me more than the other one.
Any advice?
~TCV

You're probably best to meet with both and see which is the best *mutual* fit (do you like them, do they like you).

I say this because you will likely wonder, if you don't meet both groups (I know that I sure would! ;) )
I would be discreet though.....

heh...been there, done that, bought the t-shirt. :p


A very similar thing happened to me. I spent a very long time trying to get a hold of my first group before giving up and contacting the second group. Just when sorority #2 responded to me, sorority #1, now *8 months* later, decided to up and e-mail me out of the blue!

Since sorority #2 was still trying to work out which chapter I should contact, I went ahead to the event that sorority #1 invited me to attend. Though, for personal reasons, I ended up withdrawing my interest in sorority #1 shortly after. About 2 months later, sorority #2 got into gear and invited me to their events.

I didn't mean to contact two groups at once either. However, unlike you, I wasn't actually invited to events running simultaneously. Hrm...it *could* get sticky if people find out that you're looking at two groups at once. It depends on the groups and/or individuals you're in contact with. I noted that you appear to be located in Texas - if so, this is even more important.

I would recommend the total honesty approach. Explain what happened to both of the alum presidents and hope that they're understanding. Otherwise, you have two other options: decide now which one of the two groups you want more; or, attend events for both and hope they don't find out and get upset.

I hope everything works out for you!

PNAM,

.....Kelly :)

I see no reason why you shouldn't pursue both of them and see where you fit better. It's the exact process we make the collegians go through to find a "home" so I personally don't think it should be any different.

Besides, it's a lifetime commitment. It deserves a high degree of thought.

I would say however that the former President dropped the ball a bit in not getting back to you sooner or passing your info on to the new President (but that's the former Pres in me talking).

Have fun!

I would recommend one of two things:

1) If you want to check both groups out then use the discreet approach instead of the total honesty approach -- I am not saying to lie but I would not volunteer that you are looking at two groups...personally and I know this may get me flamed but it is how I feel, as a past alum chapter pres and one who has helped at least half dozen women become GFB AI's, I would be somewhat offended if I knew we were in "competition" with another GLO...

2) Choose one group to pursue BEFORE you attend any events and then when the other group questions (if they do) why you cannot come to their event, THEN be honest and tell them 'generally' what happened -- you do NOT want them to feel like they were a second choice....

Whatever you decide, good luck and please keep us posted!

Ok, I can respect that you disagree with one of the options I offered. Frankly, I'm of the opinion that a PNAM should be able to look at as many groups as wants/needs until she finds that place where she knows she is home - even if she has to do it simultaneously. Why? My AI journey has been unusual and I have sympathy on others who have unusual circumstances as well. It's not a matter of desperation, it's a matter of finding your sisters.

The reason I suggested the total honesty approach is because:

a) I'm a goodie-two-shoes and I don't believe in lying. If I were TCV, and one of the groups asked me about it, I wouldn't be able to stand there and flat out lie. Even if no one likes my suggestion, at least we know honesty is an option. Yes?

b) From what I understand, Texas is like living in a big fishbowl. If TCV were in another state like Illinois or something, it might not be as big of a risk. However, being Greek is big in Texas and IMHO, the chances of TCV getting "found out" with two groups is higher. In Vermont, "shopping around" may not be a big deal to the alumnae ladies there. Though, in Texas and the south, it may be a cardinal sin to do so. After all, even you stated that you would be "offended" if a PNAM was working with more than one.

Of course, CutiePie2000 has this as one of her FAQs in the Advice to PNAMs thread:

To be honest, I am confused. On one hand, you and CutiePie2000 are advocating that TCV should go ahead and go to both sets of events and see whch one she fits in with as long as she's "discreet." On the other hand, you (GPhiBLtColonel) said you would be "offended" if a PNAM did this and CP2000 is saying that it could be disasterous. Have I totally misinterpreted something here? :confused:

I guess I'm just feeling a bit defensive because it always seems like my advice and opinions are never in line with anyone else's and they let me know it too. :(

At the end of the day, I just want my sister PNAMs to find their places in the Greek family. That's all, just looking for that happy ending for everyone.

PNAM,

.....Kelly


-- edited for grammar

Kelly, please re-read my post: here is what I said:

"If you want to check both groups out then use the discreet approach instead of the total honesty approach --
I am not saying to lie
but I would not volunteer that you are looking at two groups..."

I just think discretion is the better part of valor.

I know every PNAM's situation is different and some may know exactly what GLO they want to pursue while others want to shop around...that is fine..but I cannot help my own personal feelings on this matter: when I get actively involved in helping a PNAM to become a Gamma Phi Beta AI, I want to be absolutely certain she is serious and committed...I do not get warm fuzzies and assurances if I find out a PNAM is actively checking out other GLO's...by the way, anyone - esp several GCer's here -- can tell you that when I get actively involved, alum initiation WILL and DOES happen and that I will do whatever is necessary (and legal!!) to ensure it happens...the process on the alum sponsor's part takes time and commitment which I am not willing to expend if a PNAM is just shopping around and not certain she wants Gamma Phi Beta...

...anyways, this is just me...sorry if I have offended you Kelly...I did not intend to do that by any means...I truly admire your dedicated AI search and I frankly wish you had chosen Gamma Phi Beta!


:)

Cele,

Please, let's not get into a fight over something that we are essentially agreeing on.

I never accused you of advocating lying. Never ever did I state that anywhere in my post. As a matter of fact, I clearly read the part in your original post where you said "I am not saying to lie ..." It was not necessary to highlight it in super big red text.

What I did was to state why *I* like the total honesty approach. I said I liked it because:

a) I personally have discomfort with telling lies. (If it were me in that situation)

and

b) I think it could be a better tactic for TCV given that she's in an area where the backlash for getting caught could be worse than having told the full story to start with.


Where you and I got onto a sticking point is that you misunderstood what I was refering to when I responded to your post.

- I posted my suggestion regarding the total honesty approach.

- You replied saying that you disagree with that approach.

- I replied stating the reasons why I prefer that approach.

- Then, even though the reasons why I prefer it are not related to the suggestions you gave TCV, you read my post to mean otherwise.

In other words, my description of why I like the total honesty approach was a response to the discussion regarding the merit of the approach, not a response the merit of what you suggested as your own solution.

Crumbs, I don't know if anyone will be able to follow that, but at least I know what I'm trying to say.

You did not say that TCV should lie her way out of everything. I didn't either. We are agreed there. :) Of course, I can see how one might interperet what I said in a way different than what I intended.

Saying "I don't like lying" and saying "Don't mention it if they don't ask" are two totally different things.

I am not in the business of starting fights with people. Please forgive me for causing you offense. I never intended to somehow make you out to be some big supporter of lying.

.....Kelly :(


(it only seems to happen in this forum.....)