Retro Recruitment.....with a different ending

[AlwaysSAI]

I did not immediately accept the invitation from International Council. No matter what my sister's opinion, I felt that being honored as an alumnae initiate deserved serious thought. I wasn't going to just join AGD so I could call myself an NPC member--for me to do it, it had to be more than just because I was a legacy.

I reflected on my time with the girls of AGD. I remembered attending the Red & Buff formal in the winter of 2006. How the sisters shifted their actual dates around, so one of them could officially escort me. I remembered how, when my car broke down on my way for a visit, a group of them came to pick me up and when they arrived, they cradled me as I cried over my car. And, the formal of 2007, the sisters gathered to take a chapter picture but wouldn't let anyone snap, until I was in place. Any time I came to visit, the sisters of the chapter treated me as their own. Most of all, I remembered how the sisters rallied around me as I searched for acceptance at my university and celebrated with me upon my two initiations.

I wasn't privy to the inner meanings of Alpha Gamma Delta--but I knew her heart. If these women were at all indicative of her entire membership I knew I was honored to have been invited. I decided I had to accept. It was the only way I could give back to the fraternity that had given so much of it's own heart to me.

In early December, I was initiated as a sister of Alpha Gamma Delta. Many of the alumnae that knew me heard word of my initiation and came back to the chapter to witness it. Two different sisters had even saved me a set of sisterhood ribbons from the week's previous activities. The chapter had even assigned me a sister-mom that I'd been close with during my collegiate days (that was not my bio sister). Upon leaving the ceremony, I was bombarded by sisters who had known me for years. They couldn't stop talking about how long they had been waiting for me to become their sister. I was inundated with letter shirts, car stickers, cups, jars---it was amazing. Then, it dawned on me-these girls had not just become my sisters--they had been my sisters all along.

Upon returning home, I affiliated with the alumnae chapter in my area. During my first full year, I served as Ritual Coordinator. My second year begins in September and I am serving the chapter as Vice President. I attend any and all Alpha Gam events I am able to. And, my sister-mom has become one of my best friends. The following semester at the Feast of Roses, I received the "It Took You Long Enough" Award.

My journey to Alpha Gamma Delta was a long one, but it was one well worth it.