getting letters

RebelSong84 · #1 10-08-2003, 09:16 AM

hey everyone. im still a new member and just learning about all things greek so i have yet another question...

what does it mean for a guy who is in a fraternity to give you his letters? i keep hearing people talking about it and feel weird asking what it means... has anyone recieved letters before??

oceanphi01 · #2 10-08-2003, 09:27 AM

I know I've never received any, but I know sisters that have. It depends on how they give it to you. There are some of my sisters that just get rush shirts because the boys hand them out. If you are dating a guy and he gives you his letters, he is serious about you. There's also being lavaliered by the guy and being pinned by his fraternity. Pinning is usually only done when he is VERY serious about you and there's an actual ceremony and everything (one of my sisters just had this happen). Hope this helps!

BaylorBean · #3 10-08-2003, 09:28 AM

A guy giving you his letters means different things for different fraternities and even for different chapters. My boyfriend is a Pi Kapp and "dropped letters" almost 4 years ago (god I feel old now). It was a big deal, not many guys in his chapter had done that. He told me that it meant that his brothers should give me the same respect as they give him because I mean so much to him.
Some fraternities and chapters I know actually have a ritual like ceramony for it.

ilovemyglo · #4 10-08-2003, 09:31 AM

when I was in school I was given my boyfriend's letters- he lavaliered me and from then on I was allowed to wear his fraternity letters, like say a hat or a shirt with his fraternity's name. I wasn't allowed to wear or have the crest, however. But that is understandable. So basically at my school being given letters is a big deal- it means that he loves you as much as his fraternity- something he has made a life long commitment to.
Rush shirts and dance shirts aren't the same, anyone could wear those, but when I got my FARMHOUSE (His fraternity) hat, I was excited, especially since it was his pledge house, which was a HUGE DEAL!!!

BTW We aren't together now.

jmbennett · #5 10-08-2003, 02:02 PM

At my school, there are steps in inter-fraternity/sorority dating:

1. Lettering

2. Lavaliering

3. Pinning

4. Engagement

Its always been a HUGE deal in my chapter if a sister is lettered/lavaliered/pinned by her greek boyfriend. My boyfriend lettered me last March.

hannahgirl · #6 10-08-2003, 02:15 PM

I've been lavaliered and have seen many of my sisters do the same. It is a big deal especially depending on the fraternity. Some of the fraternities at my school make it a huge deal and most of the time it is very surprising when it happens because they have weird superstitions about it.

I was lavaliered by a Sigma Nu my first year....unfortunately we aren't together anymore....They didn't do anything to him because he was an alumni member but when we showed up at a party one night, a bunch of the guys got on their knees and sang to me in one of the rooms. It was great.

I think another thing is that getting a shirt with screenprinted letters or the name of the fraternity is a whole lot different than being given block letters that are sewn on the shirt. I have a bunch of event shirts from FIJI, Sigma Nu, and Lambda Chi, however, the only time I was able to wear the block letters of Sigma Nu was when I had letters around my neck.

But it does vary from campus to campus, fraternity to fraternity...

Rio_Kohitsuji · #7 10-08-2003, 02:16 PM

Ditto what everybody else said

I know at some schools no one lavaliers or "shirts" (like mine) it is just pinning..and that's an engagement.

1. dating dating dating
2. dating daing dating
3. dating dating dating
3. pinning= you have the privilage to wear his letters

Plus, it normally coincides w/ "The ring" or should come shortly thereafter

IvySpice · #8 10-08-2003, 02:42 PM

Is there any kind of girl-to-guy equivalent?

CatStarESP4 · #9 10-09-2003, 11:32 AM

Where I went for my undergrad, I have never seen this practice. I don't think GLOs in my alma mater did this. It wasn't until I went to grad school in a different school that it was more prevalent.

Now here are some terms that I wasn't exposed to until grad school that I don't understand. What is a "Date Dash" and a "Date Derby"?

DeltaSigStan · #10 10-09-2003, 11:49 AM

We have an unofficial letter ceremony for Sweethearts. I know our east coast and midwest chapters do it a lot more than the westsiders (commmited relationship in college out west? Ha!).

GamGal02 · #11 10-09-2003, 01:32 PM

My boyfriend is a Kappa Sigma and on my birthday he "dropped" or as some of you may know it "lavaliered" me. I have heard of it as one of two things. 1)It can mean when a girl means as much to a guy as his fraternity and/or 2) It can mean the next step will be engagement. It was so beautiful the way he did it. I cried. I am one of the Kappa Sig's Sweethearts and I love every single one of them. They were I think just about as excited as I was that he dropped me. My boyfriend is the best guy I know.

-Lindsey
Kappa Sigma Girl Always

FSUZeta · #12 10-09-2003, 04:47 PM

when i was in school, getting lavaliered was like going steady-like wearing your high school sweethearts senior class ring. getting pinned was like being "promised", or pre-engaged. we used to do candlelights-the girl would leave an anonymous note on a sisters desk asking her to make a sign saying"candlelight tonite after supper" and then after supper the president would start the candle pass by saying" lavaliered", we would sing a song as the candle was passed and if the girl was lavaliered when the candle came to her she would blow it out, if it was not blown out by the time it got back to the prez she would say "pinned" and around it would go again, if not blown our on that pass, the prez would say"engaged" and around it would go . it was exciting.
if they were pinned or engaged, sometimes the fraternity would come over and serenade her later that same evening.

KappaSunshine · #13 10-09-2003, 08:50 PM

My boyfriend just pinned me last night (on our two year anniversary). I'm really excited, it means a lot (basically what everyone else already said.) He was really cute...he was like, "Will you be my sweetheart?" All my sorority sisters were really happy for me!

SparkliiQTMTSU · #14 10-09-2003, 09:02 PM

Ive seen a couple of girls lavaliered by the Sigma Chi's here and it was a really sweet thing. Of course after the guy gets like attacked by his brothers, I saw one that got tied up and had like everything in the fridge thrown on him lol it was funny but they are sharing the letters with his gf so he has to pay some kind of price lol

Nichole

AXO_MOM_3 · #15 10-09-2003, 11:40 PM

I got to wear letters since I was a Rose Queen for Pi Kappa Phi. One of the brothers had a special set made for me! It was so sweet, and such an honor!