Kappa Alpha Theta - Purdue University

Kappa Alpha Theta 3 History Highlights We are inspired by our past as we look forward to our centennial in 2015! Remembering Our Past: The Silver Jubilee I n 1940, Alpha Chi reached its milestone 25th anniversary. The years leading up to it had not been easy ones in America. The 1932 Purdue Kite noted the effects of the Depression: "Despite depression and a reduced budget, Kappa Alpha Theta is still going to dance–but the social plans are much more conservative than in former years." In 1935 the bank holding the house mortgage failed, so it was necessary to renew the mortgage. That did not hold them back either. They came up with refinancing that was known as the insurance plan: a $22,000 first mortgage held by Lafayette Life Insurance Company that would come due in April 1950. It was paid through 22 $1,000 life insurance policies written on 22 girls in the chapter. Premiums were paid annually by the Kappa Alpha Theta Home Association. Their headline in the 1940 Theta Kite read "Silver Jubilee Finds Chapter Finance Sound." The "Big Fete" was planned for May 18 and 19 with dinners, teas, and reunions. A banquet would be held at the Purdue Union Building. There was a general committee made up of alumnae and members of the Home Association. H Thirteen members of the undergraduate chapter served on the hospitality committee for the Jubilee. We spoke to one of them, Jeannette Haynes Graham '40, and what she remembered most about the weekend was that the chapter received a lot of gifts and they were all silver. Jeannette had two daughters who became Thetas, Christine '78 and Rebecca '79. Jeannette suggested we speak with her pledge sister, Elizabeth Lewis Lawrence '40. Elizabeth was not on the committee and did not remember much about the anniversary celebration. What she does remember though is all the Big Bands that came to play at Purdue, including Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, and Frank Sinatra crooning. The war cut short their days at Purdue and they found themselves attending college through the summer of 1942 to reach an early graduation. The men went off to war and the women to work. Visit www.alphachithetas.org if you would like to read the full editions of the 1932 and 1940 Purdue Kite. Alumnae and actives gathered to celebrate Alpha Chi's 25th anniversary: Front Row (first) District President I Harriet Kohlmeyer and (third from left) Philena Palmer, a charter member and toastmistress; Back row, (second and third from left) Alice Newton, chapter president 1940 and Margaret Sauer, chapter president 1939. A Theta Gift Is Given New Life igh up on the side of the Alpha Chi chapter house is a metal replica of the Theta kite, made by Jim Rush in the late 1950s to grace the new house at 607 Russell Street. Jim owned Rush Metal Products Inc. in Lafayette. His wife, Janet Glatz Rush '41, and his youngest sister, Anne Rush Bostick '46, were both Alpha Chi Thetas and were active with the local alumnae group. The finished kite was hung on the front of the house and lit from behind. Since then, five more in the Rush family have become Thetas. Jim's daughter, Elaine Rush Haehl '69, was chapter president in 1972 when Alpha Chi won the Founders Award at National Convention. Her sister, Teesa Rush Eckman '72, was a member of the Gamma Upsilon Chapter at Miami of Ohio, and she has been active as an alumna with the Alpha Chi chapter, serving on both the Advisory Board and Facility Corporation Board. Teesa's daughter, Julie Eckman '01, was initiated at Miami of Ohio but transferred to Purdue and lived in the Theta house. Elaine's daughters, Laura Haehl '96 and Annie Haehl '99, were Alpha Chis as well. The most recent Theta addition is Christine Rush '13, who was initiated at Brown University under the watchful eyes of her aunts Elaine and Teesa. James Rush A few pieces of the silver received in honor of Alpha Chi's 25th anniversary. All of this was discovered when, as part of our exterior restoration work this summer, the kite was taken down and sent to be repainted and rewired. We had heard stories of the kite being crafted by a Theta father and, with a few phone calls, uncovered its history. Now, when we look at the kite flying high on the house, we will know that it is not just an ordinary decoration— it was made with Theta love. The kite originally hung on the front of the house at 607 Russell Street. After the expansion of the house in the 1990s, it was moved to the north side. Elaine Rush Haehl '69 and Teesa Rush Eckman '72 in front of the Theta kite their father made.

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