Delta Gamma - University of Arkansas

Anchored in Tradition, Building Our Future Alpha Omega Chapter of Delta Gamma at the University of Arkansas W henever I drive into Fayetteville, the first place I visit is the house at 1002 W. Maple. I remember how the summer heat never seemed to bother us during work weekends or work week, and as I look at her, I see all of us. I see us having song practice in the dining room practicing for recruitment. Sitting down to dinner, I still hear the screech of those wrought iron chairs on the floor and the crunch of the ice scoop in the ice chest. And I can still feel the excitement of Delta Gamma on Bid Day. I remember it all like it was yesterday. But, not this trip. This weekend was about a house down Maple at 625—the house that love built. The house our 400 collegians will love, call home, and create new memories that they'll recall 40 years from now. I drove straight to 625, finally, after a year of construction getting to see her come to life. And she did not disappoint. I circled the block several times seeing different details with each loop. The gothic spires atop the east and west bay windowed porches give her the look of an Olde English castle. Delta Gamma above the Maple entrance, clean and crisp. A plaque on the lower wall reading "Alpha Omega Est. 1930." It made my heart stop, and I knew we were back, as if we'd never left. It was a bridge from us to them, but then, there would be several of those yet to see. Turning off Maple onto Arkansas, there stood Alpha Omega's golden anchor. Yet another bridge between all of us who came before, and all of those yet to be. Just behind our anchor, framing the west entry, are two red brick sentries: one reads "Delta Gamma" and the other "AΩ." With so many details on the outside, I couldn't wait to see the inside. We gathered Friday evening in the courtyard of 625, seeing sisters we hadn't seen since we left The Hill all those years ago. After checking in, we mingled outside, snapping group selfies with our anchor and peeking out from between the large wooden Delta Gamma letters the collegians constructed in the front yard. The front doors swung open, the collegians greeting us with an enthusiastic Door Stack song. Door Stack songs are new to this old DG. Basically, the collegians filled the front doorway by kneeling, bending over, and standing behind the front doors. Then when the doors swing open, they break into a DG song. Just as we sang when we welcomed new members into 1002. Inside Our Home The doorway opens into a spacious foyer with various trailing doorways. The collegians waited to break off in different directions to act as tour guides for small alumnae groups. As we were guided through the main floor, I noticed the transom over every entry has the shape of an anchor in the decorative framework. Each room is decorated in bronze, pink, and blue, so many details weaving our history from 1002 into our new home. Delta Gamma Dedication — A Weekend to Remember (Continued on page 5)

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