Gamma Phi Beta - Southern Methodist University

2 | Crescent Corner A lpha Xi's house on sorority row is designed by one of the great architects of modern Dallas—Mark Lemmon. Lemmon designed 18 Georgian-style buildings for the Southern Methodist University campus, including the Fondren Science Building (1949) and Perkins Chapel (1950). Some of his best Gothic-style work can be seen in the Highland Park Methodist Church and the Highland Park Presbyterian Church. Lemmon was also the first architect of the Cotton Bowl. 3030 Daniel Avenue first opened to collegians in the fall of 1951. Although the house has had interior updates, the original design and structure are still standing. There are numerous pages in the ΓΦΒ House Corporation Board Minutes from the 1950s that note the selection of Mark Lemmon as the architect. It is thought to be the connection he had with Gamma Phi alumna Ruth Patterson Maddox '43, an electrical engineering graduate and her father Stanley Patterson, SMU's Plant Director that helped him agree to accept the job. "The Gamma Phi house is significant because it was designed by a talented and critically acclaimed historicist architect who essentially established the Georgian Revival architectural character of the SMU campus between 1923 and 1959. There are some really great buildings he designed on the campus during this period…The building's strongest feature is the Doric colonnade, with its perfectly proportioned columns." —Willis Winters, author of Crafting Tradition: The Architecture of Mark Lemmon. Alpha Xi's Historic and Architecturally Important Home Alpha Xi's Historic and Architecturally Important Home Karen's name and face probably look familiar to many Dallas-area alumnae. While she is a Gamma Phi from Purdue University, she served on the Alpha Xi House Corporation Board for three years and was active in the Dallas Alumnae Group. At the time she was a business professional working in the fields of account management and marketing. "When I volunteered to serve on the Alpha Xi House Corporation Board 20 years ago, my then-preschool daughter Nicole came to the house with me when I met with vendors. She loved to run up and down the staircase," Karen shared. "I loved this house and the neighborhood, and I thought then how great it would be to live here and do all the activities that I never had time for in college." In this volunteer position, Karen noticed a shift was going to be needed in the role of sorority "House Mother" to a role more like a "House Director" due to the ongoing facility maintenance issues, inspections and repairs at the chapter house that alumnae volunteers were not always available to handle. That experience prepared Karen to become the House Director at Kappa Delta at UT-Austin as her daughter Nicole attended college at Texas A&M in College Station. Karen remained in Austin for three years and was then ready to move back to Dallas where she has lived for 30 years previously. She is excited to be back. Although Karen is familiar with the role of house director and comfortable faced being back at Alpha Xi, she has served during an unusual time and challenging circumstances due to the pandemic. Sisters must wear masks in common areas and group gatherings are limited. Many sisters spend more time in their rooms than they normally would so they don't have to wear a mask; they also often need the privacy of their room for their Zoom classes. "The women only take off their masks in the common area while eating meals, and we can only seat two to three at a table for eight," she stated. "When watching TV, normally six to eight women might sit on the sectional, but we could only seat three while watching the Superbowl." Because of their diligence, Alpha Xi hasn't had any COVID-19 cases among the sisters in the house so far this school year. Despite the challenges, sisters look forward to fall semester and hope for more social events and normalcy. "When planning for this school year, we were all expecting far worse things to happen to college students. After seeing the news reports of what patients in hospitals were going through, we were apprehensive," she said. "But starting with move-in, the women and their parents have been wonderful about following the guidelines. That set the tone that has kept all of our actives healthy." On top of the pandemic, Texas was recently hit with unprecedented arctic temperatures that caused many residents to lose power and water for several days. Alpha Xi Chapter experienced about two days where they were without power for about 19 hours a day; the water was also shut off for an extended period of time. The first day, everyone huddled in their beds with layers of clothes and blankets trying to stay warm in zero-degree weather. "We had power around lunchtime, so we made lunch for everyone here. With no power by dinnertime and all restaurants closed, we learned to grill our take- and-bake pizza in a pan on our gas stove," she explained. "By the time the water was cut off on Tuesday, the dorms started letting visitors in, and many of the women stayed with friends or sisters there, in apartments, or went back to their parents' house as soon as roads were somewhat passable. We did our best to stay open and provide what we could, despite the weather and water challenges." When Alpha Xi had a water line break, the AHC offered to put women up in hotels. Fortunately, many sisters were able to stay where they were— warm and safe. Karen enjoys playing and coaching Pickle Ball in a local league, taking walks through campus and the neighborhood, socializing with friends and keeping in touch with Nicole, a recent college graduate. Karen has been a member of the Dallas Alumnae Group, Austin Alumnae Group, and Plano Richardson Panhellenic. You can connect with her at gpbhd.smu@gmail.com. Original blueprints for Alpha Xi's chapter house. Keeping Our Sisters Healthy, Safe, and Warm House Director Karen Lenyo Herleman, Purdue University '78, Shares Candid View of Life at Alpha Xi During Unprecedented Times

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