My Colorful West Coast Recruitment Story - Page 3

elle1776 · #31 08-30-2018, 11:37 PM

DAY 3: SISTERHOOD AND HOUSE TOURS

It was another sweltering day when I woke up and started getting ready for Day 3. I felt extremely confident and couldn’t wait to get there and see the houses. I walked up to my Rho Chi group and talked for a little bit while she looked for my schedule. There was a lot of gossiping about different chapters going on and a lot of my group had decided to drop out already. (including the rude PNM that was with me during COCONUT). With this school not being super Greek, a lot of girls figured that if they didn’t get their top choices, it wouldn’t really make a difference in their college experience if they didn't go greek. My Rho Chi finally found my schedule and it said

STRAWBERRY
GREEN APPLE
WATERMELON
ORANGE

I had my top choices again!!! I was so grateful and so excited to have my top 4!

STRAWBERRY: STRAWBERRY was first and I headed over there excitedly. My Rho Chi had seemed particularly happy about this being my first house and I wondered if she was one or just trying to trick us. I walked in and was greeted by another pretty and put together girl. She led me over to a seat by a couple of their sisterhood tables and we talked about their different sisterhood events. A couple of girls sang a little song/chant about STRAWBERRY and it was a super upbeat party. Another active then came and grabbed me and gave me a tour of their house. We talked all about a music festival I had just attended as we sat on a bed in one of the rooms. The house was decorated really nicely and the active was really bubbly. I had a really good time here.

GREEN APPLE: I was super happy to be going here again! The actives opened the doors and serenaded us as we walked into their living room and then to the patio. I was paired up with a girl that had a similar major as me and she told me how excited everyone was to have me back. We talked about their sisterhood events before she led me back from their patio to their living room and showed everyone their sisterhood video. It was cute, but not the best made video. While it did really show that they were fun and had a lot of closeness within the chapter, it gave me time to look around the room and not really feel like I would fit in here. Another active came and grabbed me afterwards to give me a house tour and she was a little bit awkward to talk to. She seemed really nervous. The house was cute but not decorated as nicely as STRAWBERRY’s house had. We chatted a bit as we walked through but soon it was time to go. As I was walking out the active suddenly started saying how happy everyone was that I had come today, and that she really hoped that she would see me tomorrow, and how I was amazing etc. I mean it’s always nice to be flattered, but it felt a little bit like overkill. It had been a been a good party, but what she said at the end made me feel a little bit weird about this house.

WATERMELON: I couldn’t wait to get into WATERMELON again. They led us into the house and did a really cute chant with some small choreography before grabbing us. The active that picked me up was so outgoing and was on the Dance Team. She showed me all of their sisterhood display tables and also showed me a connections table. They had a picture of a recent alumnae on display that had written a letter of rec. for me and it was super exciting to see and recognize a familiar face. Girls from the day before stopped by to say hello as well as the Recruitment Chair again. A junior came and grabbed me to give me a tour of the house. I loved the way this house was decorated and the hallways had a ton of accomplishments hung up on the walls. I could tell that this was a really involved house on and off campus. We then headed back downstairs where the president gave us a wonderful speech about what sisterhood and WATERMELON meant to her. This girl was an amazing speaker and, even though I didn’t know her, I looked up to her so much just based on how poised she was.

ORANGE: My next house was ORANGE and after having a super nice day before and really enjoying their philanthropy, I was excited to see them again. However, my time here ended up being a little bit lackluster. I was paired with only one active for the entire 45 minute party. She was one of their girls they showcased a lot on social media and was sweet but we didn’t hit it off at all. I was sat out on the patio and it was quiet (which was nice) but she never took me inside to see their sisterhood tables. I don’t even remember talking about sisterhood events with her, we only talked about surface level first day topics. She then went and gave me a house tour. The way they had timed out their party didn’t really work too well because everyone had moved upstairs at the same time and it made the rooms/hallways really crowded and loud. After such a long time only talking to one girl, we had run out of things to talk about and I was definitely ready when it was time to go.

I didn’t even need to think about my rankings or talk to my Rho Chi about my decisions for pref. I felt good about how I had felt during the day and confidently ranked...
1. WATERMELON
1. STRAWBERRY
2. ORANGE
3. GREEN APPLE

sigmagirl2000 · #32 08-31-2018, 12:30 PM

Interesting. Sounds like you enjoyed Green Apple more than Orange, but that's based on a short paragraph. Hopefully it won't matter and you'll get strawberry and watermelon back!

elle1776 · #33 09-03-2018, 12:28 AM

We didn’t have any parties the day after Sisterhood because of a religious holiday so I waited patiently, and nervously, for two days until it was finally time to head over to campus and see what invites I would be receiving for Preference. I knew that I really wanted to see STRAWBERRY and WATERMELON on my schedule but, as I had learned from recruitment at my previous school, anything was possible. I knew that if I had ORANGE or GREEN APPLE I would be happy to be in either of these chapters, but I also knew that it would sting to lose my favorites. I drove to campus and walked to my Rho Chi. Girls in my group were already there comparing their invite slips with each other which made me even more anxious to have that piece of paper in my hand. My Rho Chi handed me it and it said….

STRAWBERRY
WATERMELON

I absolutely ecstatic!!! I had my top 2 back!! The top two that I had been so in love with all week!! I felt so much more relaxed as I headed over to STRAWBERRY. I knew that no matter what happened tonight, I would definitely be happy with whatever chapter I ended up in the next day.

STRAWBERRY: Standing in line at STRAWBERRY, I recognized so many other PNMs that had been invited back as well. I kept reminding myself to look around at the girls next to me, these women could be my future pledge sisters!! It was finally time for the party to begin and the president came out and welcomed us to their house. She then went back inside and the doors were shut by two pretty alumnae. The actives then opened the doors and individually invited us inside of the house. I waited in line excitedly thinking about who could be the girl that picked me up at the door. The door then opened for me and I was so happy to see the girl I had talked to on the very first day. She was my first impression of STRAWBERRY and we had really connected. She gave me a big hug and led me through their foyer. There was white tulle and small, white twinkling lights that covered the entire entrance to their living room. Actives were on the other side of the tulle tunnel, singing one of their songs about STRAWBERRY(except you couldn’t see them at all. It was magical). It honestly felt like going through a fairy’s winter wonderland. I then reached the entrance to the living room and was announced to all of the actives. They welcomed me back at STRAWBERRY all at once and I was then led to my table. The tables were decorated absolutely beautifully with elaborate flower centerpieces and gold glitter sprinkled throughout. There was a letter written for me with a rose dipped in gold glitter. The living room was covered in white tulle and lattice with beautiful flowers wrapped through. Even on the ceiling there was lattice with flowers! It was really impressive! My active told me to read my letter while she and the other actives stood to greet other PNMs coming in. My letter was so sweet and beautiful. A girl I had talked to the day prior wrote it for me and I teared up a little bit reading it. Once all the PNMs were seated a glass was rang (kind of like at a wedding) and the party began. My active handed me a little menu and told me to select which cookies and ice cream combination I wanted. The menu was so cute and there were so many options! I chose snickerdoodle and vanilla and my active chose the same as another active came by to grab our selections. We started just talking about our day when the active came back with our desserts in the cutest martini glasses with mini gold spoons to eat with. It was absolutely the cutest thing and I loved that we got to choose. My active and I just started talking about everything under the sun. How stressful recruitment is, the chapter’s sisterhood, how close we were with our moms. I even opened up on how transferring from a different school had been a really hard decision and how my car accident had affected my mental health there. We hit it off like we had known each other for years and I felt so comfortable with her. Then she asked me what other chapter I was preferencing that night. I felt a little uncomfortable knowing that this was not necessarily a question you should ask someone and knowing that this chapter had been fined in previous years for dirty rushing on preference night. I told her WATERMELON and she told me that she had the same two houses on her pref night (these two houses compete with each other) and how happy she had been to choose STRAWBERRY. I knew she was just trying to sell me on the final benefits of her chapter, but I felt like it could’ve been started a different way. She then led me outside to their patio where another active gave a speech about how she had lost a family member the year prior and how the girls of STRAWBERRY gave her the strength to continue with school. It was a very moving speech but as I looked around to the other actives, I noticed that I didn’t recognize very many of them. We were then led out as four women sang a beautiful song about sisterhood. My active gave me a huge hug and wished me luck and love as I left the house.

Walking over to STRAWBERRY I knew that they had set the bar extremely high for my decisions. I had such a wonderful time there and couldn’t wait to experience WATERMELON’s pref. A bunch of girls from STRAWBERRY walked over to WATERMELON together and got in line.

WATERMELON: WATERMELON’s doors opened and the president gave a speech very similar to STRAWBERRY’s as they began to welcome us in two at a time. It was finally my turn and my active came forward and called my name. I was so excited it would be her preffing me. We had met on philanthropy day and had totally connected, both of us were junior transfers and I saw her as role model from the second I met her. She gave me a token to wear throughout the party and led me in to the living room as other actives greated me along the way. She sat me down and told me to read my letter while she greeted more PNMs coming in. The room was decorated all black, including the actives dresses. The centerpieces of the tables were white and blue lilies with beautiful ribbons wrapped around the large vases. There were candles placed all around the table and it felt very mysterious (but in a good way). My letter was written by another girl that I had met the first day of recruitment. She was involved in a program that I wanted to be involved in and she said that no matter what I decided after this night, she hoped to see me in that school’s program with her. I really liked that idea that these girls would be my friends even if I didn’t decide to join this house. Once all the PNMS were in my active showed me the macarons on the table and sparkling apple cider that was for me. The macarons were so delicious and we laughed together on how many crumbs were getting everywhere and I felt totally comfortable enough to not worry about how I was eating those pesky macarons. We talked about the same things that I had talked about in STRAWBERRY but with my active here I felt more of a down to earth vibe from her. We talked about the struggles of being older and joining a new school and I once again opened up my rough time the year prior. The girl that wrote my letter stopped by and gave me a big hug saying that so many women wanted to pref me that night and that my active was so lucky. I felt so special and really felt at home here. Another active stood up and gave a similar speech to STRAWBERRY’s that had the entire room, including myself, in tears. We were then all led outside and surrounded a totem of the sorority. Another moving speech was given and we each walked up one by one, placing our token on the totem. The actives were quietly singing all around us and after I placed mine, I looked around the patio and recognized so many faces. I remembered so many girls that I had wonderful conversations with throughout the week and really didn't want this party to end. But, alas, it was time to go and we were led to the front door through a tunnel of actives holding candles. My active gave me the biggest hug saying that she hoped to see me the next day. We stood outside in a group as the actives paused at the door, still signing their farewell song, before blowing out their candles simultaneously and shutting the doors. I got chills.

I walked over to voting and quietly thought about my decision. I felt so conflicted and knew that I would love to be a part of either chapter. I looked through my notes in my PNM handbook and noticed that I had enjoyed WATERMELON a little bit more each day (except for one where STRAWBERRY had beaten them out slightly) I also noticed I had met so many more girls in WATERMELON than I had in STRAWBERRY. Girls came by each day to say hello if I had met them before and I could actually remember their names and what we talked about exactly. With STRAWBERRY, eventhough I had loved my time at their house this week, I hadn’t met as many women and of the women I met, I couldn’t really remember their names as well. While I LOVED the girl that preffed me in STRAWBERRY, she was the only girl I had really remembered. While the girls in STRAWBERRY were similar to me, I saw the women in WATERMELON as leaders and role models, the women that I knew would push me to be my very best and would be there during the highs and lows. I went to my Rho Chi and confidently ranked…

1. WATERMELON
2. STRAWBERRY

sigmagirl2000 · #34 09-03-2018, 09:59 AM

Thanks for the updates this weekend. Can't wait to see how it turns out. Hoping for Watermelon, as Strawberry sounds like they had a pile of infractions and such going on and weren't the most genuine. Wishing the best for you!

ChioLu · #35 09-03-2018, 02:39 PM

Hoping for Watermelon too even though the member at Watermelon said that she hoped to see her the next day — which is a no-no. (Since you’re going through Recruitment as an active this year, you can say “I’m so glad you’re here at Pref. The chapter has loved you all week.” You might be okay with saying something like “I know you have a big decision tonight. I hope it’s the same as mine.” Or “Great minds think alike.”)

Please finish so we know where you found tour home!

P.S. I know the university and know who Blueberry is (from instagram pics of morning sunlight on the house), though that doesn’t matter much since you hadn’t gone back there since day 2.

elle1776 · #36 09-05-2018, 12:57 AM

The day was finally here!! I was BID NIGHT!! After waiting all morning and afternoon, it was finally time to head over to the school and find out what sorority I would be invited to join! I called my mom and she wished me good luck and reminded me that I had loved both chapters all week and that she was proud of me for getting through (another) recruitment! I headed over to campus and met up with my group. The nervous energy surrounding where we were was crazy. Everyone was so anxious and just wanted to get out hands on our bids!! We lined up with our Rho Chi groups once everyone was there and our Rho Chi started to pass out our cards. She made us sit on them so we couldn’t look through the envelope and see. I turned to the girl next to me and asked her who she had preffed, she said WATERMELON and STRAWBERRY too! We both were wanting WATERMELON and were super excited at the thought of being sisters! They did a Rho Chi reveal before the countdown and my Rho Chi ended up being a STRAWBERRY. I had really liked her all week and figured that even if I did get my second choice at least I would know one more girl! I wanted to be a WATERMELON so badly but kept on reminding myself that I still had really loved STRAWBERRY too and that I could find my home in either. After what seemed like hours it was finally time to open up our bids. Everyone began to count…

10-9-8

7-6-5

4-3-2

1!!!

I reached underneath me and grabbed my envelope quicker than I think I’ve ever grabbed anything. My hands were shaking like crazy as I ripped it open and saw.

The ladies of WATERMELON cordially invite you to become a sister of our chapter.

Also known as DELTA GAMMA!!

I WAS SO HAPPY!! I stood up and jumped up and down screaming like crazy with all the other girls in my group! The girl next to me got a bid to Delta Gamma as well and we hugged each other so tight. We then ran together to where the other new Delta Gammas were gathering and immediately started chanting and taking pictures with each other. We were all so excited and pretty much ran to where we would meet up with the actives before heading to the house. Running over there I felt so excited and relieved to have found my home. I ran into the arms of the girl who had preffed me the night before as she screamed how happy she was to have me in DG. The Rho Chis were then reunited with their chapters and we ran to the house to start all the fun! Bid night was so amazing! We got our new shirts to change into, a bag full of goodies, and a beautiful Hawaiian lei to wear and take home. It was so nice to relax after a long week and take pictures and eat food. My bid night buddy (or anchormate as we call them) was the first girl that had I had talked to in DG. She was so welcoming and made me feel so at home.

Over the next few weeks I got even more comfortable in Delta Gamma. All of the women were so welcoming and constantly made sure that everyone was included. I immediately signed up to be a coach of a fraternity for our Anchor Splash Philanthropy and it totally helped me feel included super quickly into Greek Life at my school. I got a big, and a grandbig, and was completely spoiled during reveal week. Initiation was absolutely beautiful and it made me fall in love with the chapter even more. In the spring I was appointed to a position (after a girl went to study abroad) and I was able to plan a huge event that we hold and the end of every year and I’m currently planning some events for fall. I am so happy in Delta Gamma and feel so blessed to have been able to officially find my home.

After the disappointment that recruitment was the first time for me, and the difficult and extremely hard decision of leaving my first school, I wasn’t sure if I could handle another week of long days and harsh cuts. I am so glad that I gave it all a second chance. My advice for any one reading this who is going through recruitment (either right now or in the future) is to trust what fate has in store for you. You never know when a blessing in disguise might suddenly change what you thought were concrete plans for the better!

Thank you everyone for reading my story!! I’ll be an active in this upcoming recruitment and I’ll update a little bit on how it goes during my first time on the other side! xoxo

Sciencewoman · #37 09-05-2018, 08:38 AM

Congratulations!

*winter* · #38 09-05-2018, 08:56 AM

Thanks for sharing your story. I enjoyed your detailed descriptions- I felt like I was at Pref alongside you! It was a long journey, but I am sure Delta Gamma is well worth it!