How protective are you of your letters?

[DSTCHAOS]

Originally posted by sugar and spice
But it's gone both ways. I get the feeling that some posters in that thread were trying to say I was irresponsible or a bad Greek just because I don't really care all that much who's wearing my letters.

What came first, the chicken or the egg?

Oh well, this was a fun discussion nevertheless.

[adpiucf]

It's a personal issue. I think it is great PR for as many people as possible to wear our event t-shirts if they participated in our philanthropy, or for the guys to wear our homecoming and date function shirts.

Crest items and raised letter shirts I'd prefer to keep with members-- the exception to raised letters being if I lent a shivering friend my sweater!

[sigpsigirl]

My sorority, Sigma Psi, is a 108-year-old local sorority that takes a lot of pride in its letters. There are a lot of rules about when and where (on your person) you can wear your letters so as not to disrespect the sorority. No one but initiated members (active or inactive) can wear them, not even on a Greek Week shirt. We take a lot of pride in knowing that if we see a woman wearing a Sigma Psi letter shirt, she was not only in our sorority but went to our college as well.

However, we do allow everyone else to wear the spelled-out words "Sigma Psi" on clothing, if they do feel the need to recognize us.

[PiPhiGirl2005]

I'm pretty protective towards my letters, but so is everyone else I know, so I never thought of it as a big deal. As far as the party favor thing goes, my boyfriend has LOTS of Pi Phi stuff from date parties and formals, and so do the dates everyone else brought to those things. Those favors kind of represent the event they were at, however, and not the group hosting the event.

Likewise, I have about six Sigma Chi date party shirts and several more Derby Days shirts that I wear all the time. They don't have letters on them (this particular chapter only allows members and lavaliered girlfriends, plus their sweetheart, to wear their letters). But, like our party favors, they represent the event, not the organization. Maybe that's weird logic, but that's just how it is in my mind.

When my roommate was named Sigma Chi Sweetheart, I went out and ordered her a Sigma Chi lettered sweatshirt that said "Sweetheart" on it. I remembered some older Pi Phis who had been Sigma Chi Sweethearts having sweatshirts like this. My dear roommie was rather hesitant to wear it, and even checked with a bunch of guys in the chapter to make sure it was okay. When they said absolutely, she began wearing it with pride practically nonstop. Now, in my mind, her wearing their letters was an okay thing because she had been selected to represent their organization as their sweetheart.

[Corsulian]

We had a guy who was dropped as a pledge a few semesters back wear a mixer shirt with our letters...I kindly informed him that such as a terrible idea and it would be best for his health if he changed sooner than later.
I had a girl once say she intended to wear my letters when I let my guard down. My guard is still up.

[AlphaSigOU]

Only initiated members of Alpha Sigma Phi may wear or display items with the coat-of-arms, shield and stylized 'Phoenix Mark' with Greek letters. A pledge may wear clothing with the three Greek letters. As for our badge, the only non-member who can wear it is the wife or the fiancee of a member, though we encourage them to wear the Sister Pin.

Our chapter wasn't a big stickler on being protective over our letters, but at the time when I was an undergrad, we were pretty small. Most fraternities at the University of Oklahoma usually collect chapter-issued items when a pledge depledges or a member is suspended or expelled, usualy accompanied by a warning to not wear any clothing or display any items from the fraternity.

[_Lisa_]

I've only let one other person wear my letters once. I went on a short car trip with a friend of mine who got car sick & the only extra shirt I happened to have was one with my letters on it. He wore it to our destination & the rest of the day, but washed & returned it immediately.

[KSigkid]

Originally posted by sugar and spice
But it's gone both ways. I get the feeling that some posters in that thread were trying to say I was irresponsible or a bad Greek just because I don't really care all that much who's wearing my letters. I think it's simply a difference of opinion -- the way people feel is going to vary from type of organization (BGLO/LGLO/MGLO being, on the whole, more protective) to school environment to chapter to the individual. I don't really care how other people treat their letters -- I only worry about mine.

Completely understandable - I agree with you, it really doesn't matter to me how XYZ fraternity or ABC sorority treat their letters or shirts, as it's not going to change how I feel about mine.

It also seems like, from personal experience as well as posts in this thread, that there's a difference between how NPC and fraternities treat the issue. I think it's interesting, to say the least; not one of those issues you think about, but when it's brought up there's a whole number of opinions.

Tom - I don't see anyone "pissing and moaning" in this thread. Overall it's been a good discussion, and disagreement isn't a bad thing. I don't see how we need to "move on" from this thread.

[DSTCHAOS]

Originally posted by Corsulian
We had a guy who was dropped as a pledge a few semesters back wear a mixer shirt with our letters...I kindly informed him that such as a terrible idea and it would be best for his health if he changed sooner than later.
I had a girl once say she intended to wear my letters when I let my guard down. My guard is still up.

This post made me chuckle. I feel ya though!

[valkyrie]

Could someone please explain to me why a woman would want to wear her boyfriend's letters, either as clothing or a badge? Also, could someone please explain why any woman in the year 2005 would want to be the "sweetheart" of a fraternity?

[Taualumna]

Originally posted by valkyrie
Could someone please explain to me why a woman would want to wear her boyfriend's letters, either as clothing or a badge? Also, could someone please explain why any woman in the year 2005 would want to be the "sweetheart" of a fraternity?

Because it's nice and "old fashioned"...some people are like that...not every woman wants to be "independent" in a so called "modern" way.

ETA: besides, it seems so sweet/nice...

[tunatartare]

Originally posted by valkyrie
Could someone please explain to me why a woman would want to wear her boyfriend's letters, either as clothing or a badge? Also, could someone please explain why any woman in the year 2005 would want to be the "sweetheart" of a fraternity?

I would NEVER wear a boy's badge. The reason I have my boyfriend's letters is that one day I was freezing and asked to borrow a sweatshirt and the only ones he has all have letters on them. After that he just told me to keep it, and seeing as I like to sleep with the AC on way high, I usually just sleep in it.

[Sister Havana]

Only initiated Alpha Phi Omega Brothers are allowed to wear letters or things with the crest, etc. Pledges wear a pledge pin with the letters on them, but that's about it as far as non-initiated members wearing letters.

I'm pretty protective of my letters in that sense. I certainly wouldn't freak at someone touching them, though. And if lending someone my APO sweatshirt meant the difference between life and death, I'd do it.

[33girl]

Originally posted by valkyrie
Could someone please explain to me why a woman would want to wear her boyfriend's letters, either as clothing or a badge? Also, could someone please explain why any woman in the year 2005 would want to be the "sweetheart" of a fraternity?

The same reason a man would want to be a sorority's sweetheart. Because it shows that a group of people that you like think that you're more special than the average man/woman. It doesn't mean your earthly purpose is to serve that fraternity.

[33girl]

Originally posted by sugar and spice
To me, lettered tee shirts are:
1) an article of clothing first and foremost
2) something that shows my ties to my sorority
3) a reminder of my sorority's values and ritual

in that order. It doesn't bother me that other people might have that order reversed -- although, as stated in the other thread, it does bother me that anyone thinks they have a right to take lettered clothes or objects away from someone who deactivated (without compensation!) simply because of points 2 & 3. To me, that's stealing, which is probably not in accordance with most of our rituals. However, I have no problem with people who just don't want non-members wearing their letters -- I just don't really care that much myself.

If someone deactivates, why would they WANT to keep letters? I certainly wouldn't. As I stated, if the girl had any items that were superduper expensive, compensation was offered. Most terminated people just passed their stuff on to their little if they had one. Like I've said before, I don't understand why there has to be a tshirt for every event. Maybe if there were fewer letters floating around it wouldn't be such a problem. I mean, I had maybe 3-4 letter sweatshirts and a jacket the whole time I was in college.

All I can say is, you're quite lucky if all the terminations in your chapter have been so smooth that this isn't an issue to you.