Story by Bridgette McAuliffe, Staff Writer
Photo courtesy of Katie Gipson
On April 21, the Epsilon Omicron chapter of Alpha Delta Pi celebrated its 50th Anniversary with a day-long celebration on the CFSB Center concourse.
Alpha Delta Pi was the first secret society for women, establishing its Alpha chapter at Wesleyan Female College in 1851 as the Adelphean Society. In 1905 the Adelphean Society changed its name to Alpha Delta Pi and became a national organization.
Hannah Crawford, junior from Auburn, Kentucky, was part of the planning committee for the anniversary event. She was in charge of compiling a slideshow filled with pictures of current sisters and sisters of years past.
On the day of the event, Crawford was also in charge of setup and tear down during event changes halfway through the day, as well as giving campus tours to returning alumni.
“A lot of things have changed,” Crawford said. “I was in charge of making sure everyone was having a good time.”
The event started with ADPi’s annual Founder’s Day luncheon at which awards were given out to members of the chapter. In the evening, the chapter hosted a celebratory dinner for the 50th anniversary. Seven of the charter members were in attendance at the event.
“It’s cool to see women who went through 50 years ago and compare the differences,” Crawford said. “It’s exciting to see how we started from something so small and grew to having such a big presence.”
The open motto of Alpha Delta Pi is “we live for each other.” Crawford says she loves trying to live by that every single day.
Hannah Eubanks, Murray State graduate from Frankfort, Kentucky, is an alumnus of the Epsilon Omicron chapter that returned for the celebration.
“It felt like being in college again, but it was also so good to see the growth in the chapter,” Eubanks said.
She served on the executive committee when she was an active member said it was nice to see the growth in the members of the chapter.
“I think the thing I appreciate most about ADPi is how thoughtful and caring everyone is,” Eubanks said. “it’s amazing to know the organization has been thriving for this long.”
As the chapter continues to thrive, Eubanks said she hopes the chapter continues to flourish by recruiting amazing women, being involved on campus and continuing the positive legacy that was started in the 1960s.
Diana Schweitzer, junior from Shelbyville, Kentucky, was the chairman of the event.
“It was really great seeing alumni come together,” Schweitzer said. “Even if we had never met before, you could just tell we were sisters. The love was definitely there.”
Schweitzer said that being a part of a sisterhood that has such a presence on campus is empowering and she has made a lot of her closest friends through this sisterhood.
“I hope to see our chapter continue to expand and build friendships like I have,” Schweitzer. “I encourage sisters to become a leader for the sorority and the community.”