Home Is Where Your Sisters Are
Author: Natalie D. Editor: Grace C.
While we can all attest that these may possibly be the best four years of our lives, the feeling is bittersweet when they eventually come to an end. This is a feeling that Delta Delta Delta sister Maddie H. knows all too well.
Maddie spent the last year serving her chapter as New Member Educator. Through this, she created a personal relationship with Panhellenic New Members and the incoming women of her chapter. To them, she says, "in general, the most stressful part of the entire process is the feeling of being new to a chapter full of so many amazing women."
She elaborated on embracing how uncomfortable this feeling is and realizing that this process is the start of something so unique if you really put in the effort. The idea of change may seem overwhelming and scary, but it is the most fantastic introduction to who you are and how you embrace adversity. As New Member Educator, she was able to be a part of helping others feel like her chapter is a home.
She says that this experience shaped her into the woman she is today by showing her that she could be a great leader. This experience allowed her to be a part of many women's college experiences by playing an active role in her chapter and with its New Members.
Maddie wants to leave her current sisters with the inspiration to be open-minded and involved in the chapter. She said that it's so essential to make new friends regardless of if you already have an established friend group. “These relationships are what makes college the melting pot of life,” she says.
To the upcoming seniors in her chapter, she encourages them to hold onto every moment of their college experience so tightly. She mentions how fast college moves and that in those final months of undergrad, it's important to applaud yourself for how far you've come and all of the accomplishments you've made. “It's so important to embrace all of your lasts, remember all of the small details of every experience, and never to take yourself too seriously," she says.
To her chapter, she wants to personally thank every sister who has impacted her life. She says that Tri Delta has allowed her to grow and has given her the space to figure out who she wants to be in life, surrounded by a support system of sisters who genuinely care for her.
To Panhellenic, she wants to impart the message that everyone in this community is so similar and different in their own unique ways and that this diversity should be celebrated. There is such a strong message that can be relayed if we work to create a community that works together.
While leaving a place you have called home these past four years may be challenging, Florida State University and the Panhellenic community will always be home for so many women.
"Thank you for introducing me to so many authentic people that have encouraged me in more ways than I could count. I am so grateful for 534 W. Park Ave. and the people that have made it a home for the past 4 years," says Maddie.