Gamma Phi Beta - Southern Methodist University

Crescent Corner A Publication for Alpha Xi Alumnae by Alpha Xi Alumnae | Fall 2016 AFFILIATED HOUSE CORPORATION INTRODUCES NEW ALUMNAE NEWSLETTER I hope you have been able to read through the two issues of the Alpha Xi Collegiate newsletters—one sent this summer and one in early fall. For many of us who are no longer regularly at Southern Methodist University, it is a pleasure to read about the chapter members' many awards and recruitment successes. This newsletter, delivered biannually, will focus more on connecting Alpha Xi alumnae; profiling alumnae in each issue and highlighting SMU and Alpha Xi happenings as they relate to those no longer at SMU. I recently had the pleasure of speaking with a fellow alumna, Jacquelyn Hilger Graves '37, who was initiated on March 3, 1937. Since Gamma Phi Beta installed at SMU merely eight years before, Jackie was in one of the first initiation classes. Jackie recalls many visits from international officers checking on the young chapter during her collegiate years. And after graduation, she became a member of the International Endowment Board and made several trips to Chicago where the Gamma Phi Beta national office was headquartered at the time. As we spoke, I couldn't help comparing Jackie's experience as a member in a young chapter with my own time as an SMU Gamma Phi. We both enjoyed connecting with sisters on campus and had weekly social events— Jackie's favorite was the weekly Sunday afternoon teas. Jackie did mention how nice it would have been to have had a sorority house to further bond with sisters. "We weren't able to sit down to dinner with each other each night like the girls are able to today," she said. As we continue to publish these newsletters, I hope all decades of Alpha Xi alumnae are able to connect with one another as Jackie and I did. In IIKE, Sarah Tollett Grohmann '93, Editor sarahgrohmann@yahoo.com The spring new member class. Making a Difference for Gamma Phi Beta International Council Member Mindy Sutton '94 Encourages Alumnae to Get Involved N ot knowing a whole lot about sororities before joining Gamma Phi Beta at SMU, Mindy Sutton '94 felt the draw from the Gamma Phi Beta house during recruitment that so many alumnae before, and after, have experienced. Mindy felt the women in the chapter were down-to-earth, open, and welcoming. She felt like this could be a place where she could make a difference. Mindy was initiated in 1994 and served as administrative vice president on the executive council for one year. She has so many memories from her three years living in the chapter house. "The retreats, Big/Lil Sister Night, initiation activities, and recruitment are some of the big events we enjoyed together," Mindy said. "Some of the more commonplace, every day activities are most memorable: getting ready for social events together, watching movies in the TV room, studying together downstairs, and just doing things together. We had so much fun!" Her time as an undergraduate in Gamma Phi Beta led Mindy to where she is today, working as the assistant vice chancellor for student affairs and dean of students at the University of Mississippi. Her experiences in Gamma Phi Beta developed her leadership skills, taught her how to work well with others, and develop relationships. "After traveling as a consultant for Gamma Phi Beta immediately after graduating from SMU, I decided I wanted to work on a college campus, and naturally gravitated toward student affairs," Mindy said. (Continued on page 2)

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