Chi Omega - University of California, Berkeley

Χ Ω 3 CHI OMEGA MEET OUR NEW HOUSE DIRECTOR Daisy West Shares Goals for Mu B orn in Kodiak Island, Alaska, House Director Daisy West has traveled far from home in her new position with Chi Omega. Her parents were both in the Coast Guard and moved frequently, living in both Puerto Rico and Sacramento, but were often settled in Alaska, as her dad enjoyed living there. After graduating from college, Daisy worked in a law office in Kodiak until she moved to the Bay Area this past spring. Daisy's aunt was a house director at Cal and always told Daisy that she felt the job would be a perfect fit. She accepted and started the position in the middle of the spring semester. Daisy has been working hard ever since she started, organizing big plans to benefit the chapter and its future success. "I'm working on a long-term project maintenance and repair list for the house corporation. My goal is to give the list of important projects early and in order of importance so that they can make planned decisions about these rather than being forced into a repair or replacement when something breaks," Daisy said. Daisy's goals for Mu revolve mainly around sustainability and safety. She has worked hard to implement recycling and composting efforts in the chapter house. Last year, the city of Berkeley picked up an equivalent of 20 roll carts of garbage each week from the chapter house. By replacing large garbage cans in the chapter house to smaller ones, adding compost and recycle bins around the house, and educating members on what to recycle and compost, the chapter has reduced their waste to just five roll carts a week. With the school year already in full swing, Daisy continues to be impressed by the executive board members' leadership and willingness to work hard to create positive change. "This year I got to help move members into the house and had the chance to meet them all individually," Daisy said. "I love having them say hi to me and knowing their names when I am walking through the house. It may seem like a little thing, but they all know who I am and I know them. These small connections with them are my favorite part of the job so far." You can reach Daisy at chiomuhd@gmail.com. Age Before Beauty Recent Chapter House Updates "When we build, let us think that we build forever." John Ruskin, The Seven Lamps of Architecture, 1849 Summer Priorities Uncover New Needs Our lovely, century-old chapter house continues to inspire us with its architectural style and ambience, but also to surprise us with its needs. After careful budgetary analysis, summer break project priorities shifted from powder room and snack bar upgrades to major system overhauls and replacements. The roof over the front, or "old" wing, of the house, encompassing four skylights, was rebuilt. We strive to avoid leaks, but water inevitably finds an opening, even in a drought. The upstairs carpets were all replaced, using a color and pattern that blends nicely with the main-level floor coverings. One unanticipated need was the replacement of the boiler that supplies hot water throughout the house, along with many of the horizontal pipes and a clutch of thermostats. Recent Improvements In progress now is upgrading of the house security systems, including the addition of alarms to the front and back fob-operated doors that will sound shortly after a door is opened to ensure it was not propped open and alerts us if the lock does not latch. There also will be a keypad controlling these doors that requires a code input in addition to a fob swipe for entry at night, an enhancement to allay concern for a lost fob being used inappropriately. Chapter room exterior doors will have new, strong key-operated locks, and the doors leading to the new side deck will have ingress upgrades. Finally, we will replace the vintage walk-in freezer, a rooftop furnace, and some laundry equipment. All of these repairs and improvements, plus an expanded recycling program and a new drinking water machine, were envisioned, researched, and managed by talented House Director Daisy West, who came onboard in the spring semester. Directors, advisors, and chapter members alike heartily applaud her foresight and diligence. Loyally, Helen Nicholas, Psi Theta '67 Corporation Board President Chi Omega Association (510) 504-7986 F or several years now the Mu house corporation has sent out several newsletters each year to more than 1,400 Mu chapter members throughout the country. Each year this newsletter is also sent to more than 3,400 Chi Omega sisters that live near the Bay area, no matter which collegiate chapter they called home as a student. Keeping in close contact with Chi Omega alumnae is one of the house corporation's top priorities each year. It is important to us that you, our loyal alumnae, are in the know about what is going on with the chapter, and that we continue to share stories of how Chi Omega is influencing the lives of women. The cost of producing the newsletter and sending it to more than 4,800 sisters is very expensive, but we view it as an investment and want to continue our com- munication efforts. So today we are asking all of Mu chapter sisters, and Chi Omega sisters from other chapters that call the Bay area home, to make a financial contribution toward our alumnae communication costs. With alumnae support to pay for these costs, the house corporation board can allocate more funds for much needed projects in order to keep our chapter house competitive, and safe for our undergraduate sisters. Within this newsletter you will find an envelope. Please consider using this to make your donation TODAY. By making a gift to Mu chapter you are investing in our undergraduate sisters and future generations of Chi Omega. Please make checks payable to Chi Omega Association and include your name, chap- ter of initiation, and initiation year in the memo. Thank you for your consideration! Financial Support Needed

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