Kappa Alpha Theta - Purdue University

Theta Kite Alpha Chi Chapter of Kappa Alpha Theta • Established at Purdue University in 1915 • Spring 2015 H ow would it look to see one hundred candles glowing on a tiered cake on Saturday the 23rd of May? Can you see it in your mind's eye? I see the flames flicker and feel the glow of candlelight. While the gala will not include one hundred candles, it will offer you the warmth and bright eyes of hundreds of your sisters. The warmth of their friendship will far exceed that of any kindled fire. We have much to celebrate and celebrate we shall. Please see page 3 for more about this glorious and once-in- a-lifetime event. We have given ourselves–our present and our future–a very special birthday gift: a successfully executed Century of Sisterhood campaign that has resulted, to date, in more than $1,096,871 raised. Together, we have exemplified the motif of sisters helping sisters in a way that was only dreamed of just a short time ago. Kudos to our campaign co-chairs Kay Murphy Yeomans '64 and Ann Fawcett Murphy '72 for their relentless optimism. Kudos to each of you who have helped make this campaign a ringing success. One of the gifts you will take away from the centennial celebration is a journal that captures the history of the Alpha Chi Chapter, lists the events of the weekend, and records the history of this momentous campaign. Donors will be recognized, as will classes whose donor participation is at 50 percent or more of its members. We invite you to challenge your pledge sisters to help your class reach this mark. Our mortgage is due in July. Without our generous flow of giving, that date would be a fearful one. Because of your generosity, we happily are exploring the granting of a new mortgage, a mere fraction of the amount of our current debt. A special message to those of you who have the ability to accelerate the timeline of your pledge payments: sending your gift by the end of May of this year further increases what we can do for the chapter in the future by applying your entire gift to the mortgage today. Would you give this opportunity some thought? Gather up your memories and come join our celebration. I hope to see each of you in May. Loyally, Mary Lincoln Campbell '64 Alpha Chi Facility Corporation President (734) 516-8337 Campbell@edfvc.com A lpha C hi Turns 10 0 $70,000 Challenge Met O ur kites continue to soar. In September, four Alpha Chi Thetas joined together on a challenge, offering to match dollar-for-dollar every donation made by December 31, up to $70,000. Sisters responded generously. We were so close on December 31 that we extended the deadline and within two weeks, we met the challenge. Thank you to those four generous sisters, Nancy Hayes Gill '53, our lead donor, along with Nancy Duff Morton '58, Nancy Schwein King '58, and Barbara Dye Thayer '49, in memory of her sister, Nancy Dye Beck '57. And thank you to all who answered their challenge and brought us so much closer to our $1.25 million goal. The Century of Sisterhood campaign has now raised $1,096,871 from more than 600 sisters. The chapter house mortgage comes due in July, and with your help we will be reducing it to a very manageable amount. If we make our goal, we could eliminate it entirely! If you haven't yet made a donation, please join us by mailing the enclosed pledge form or donating online at www.alphachithetas.org. Loyally, Kay Murphy Yeomans '64 Ann Fawcett Murphy '72 Judy Bernet Evans '64 Helps Pay It Forward M any Alpha Chi Chapter alumnae will be familiar with the name Judy "JB" Bernet Evans '64. A loyal fan of all things Theta and Purdue Boilermakers, JB spearheaded the 2011 Big Theta Reunion with Marilynn Bottomley Dammon '66, which brought five pledge classes from the 1960s together for a reunion at 607 Russell Street. JB says that her mother, Mary Jane Bernet, Alpha Tau, was a driving force behind her attending a college where she could have the experience of living in a sorority house. Mary Jane remained close friends with many of her Theta sisters all her life and exposed JB to the lifelong connection of sisterhood. JB earned a bachelor of arts in interior design from Purdue. After several years working across the nation as an interior designer, she returned to the University of Cincinnati to earn a bachelor of architecture degree. She is a registered architect and certified interior designer. Living in the Theta chapter house exposed JB to women with a variety of interests and backgrounds. She recalls the pivotal moment that started her on her interior design career path. "As a pledge, I walked into the room of Barbara Hamm Parker '62 and she had about 75 different colored pencils on her desk. I remember asking her about them, and she explained that she was an interior design major. I thought, that's for me. I promptly changed my major and never looked back." (Continued on page 2)

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