I'm pretty sure I mentioned Presents before, but I'll mention it again!
Does the collegiate chapter already do Presents?
Presents is done by the alumnae chapter to formally present the chapter's new members to the university community, the NM's parents and family, and the Greek community. Each NM is introduced listing her hometown, class standing, and major/intended major. It's a fun way to spotlight each NM before they start NM education.
Basically the bulk of the work usually involves getting the invites out to everyone in advance, and it's usually hard with the NM families especially if they don't live nearby. The place is usually adorned with red and yellow roses (of course!), and after the presentation everyone's invited to stay for light refreshments and sandwiches....and loads of picture taking!
What is the most touching though, is the idea of "alum chums". In addition to her sister-mother, each NM also gets an alum chum, and her alum chum provides this NM with a different kind of guidance. Some of the alum chums in my alum chapter have 30, 40, 50 years as an Alpha Gam under their belts! They're not obligated to shower their alum chum with gifts like the sis-moms do, but these NMs usually get spoiled anyway. My alum chum is the president of my alum chapter, and she and I still have a special relationship to this day.
The idea of PRESENTS came when my chapter was established in 1992. I know some West coast chapters did PRESENTS, as it was a Delta Epsilon alumna that helped instill that tradition with Delta Sigma!
|