I'll be the first to admit that I was skeptical about Greek life. We all hear things during high school, and some of these are scary.

I didn't go through formal recruitment my freshman year for a few reasons. I graduated high school a year early, and even though I didn't move out of town for college, I was still terrified. I felt like a baby in this new, much more serious environment. No one in my family had joined a fraternity or sorority, so I didn't grow up with an excitement to find my own home away from home.

By the time I started my sophomore year, I wasn't worried about getting lost or being overwhelmed by homework anymore. I started the honors program, joined the pre-law club, and had a serious interest in going Greek.

I heard about Sigma Sigma Sigma while signing up for formal recruitment. The University of Southern Indiana at the time had four Panhellenic sororities when I was going through recruitment, but a new one was being colonized during that time.

Being naturally inquisitive, I did a little research on all of the sororities to be prepared for recruitment, including Tri Sigma. Tri Sigma's mission, vision, and values statements spoke to me more than any other, before even meeting a member of any of the other sororities.

The mission statement emphasizes developing strong womanly character, and the vision statement empowers women to change the world. Tri Sigma's values are hope, love, faith, wisdom, and power.

All of these statements are close to my heart because they are traits of a classy woman that strives to influence others and accomplish great things in life. Ever since I was a little girl, I've always had big dreams. I could see from the very beginning that Tri Sigma was an organization that could inspire me to achieve those dreams.

One of Sigma Sigma Sigma's symbols is a sailboat to motivate women to be ever moving forward. A skull and crossbones is another symbol, and it reflects their motto "Faithful unto Death." The colors are royal purple and white, and the jewel is a pearl.

Tri Sigma's recruitment didn't start until after formal recruitment ended, and I sincerely wanted to keep an open mind. While recruitment was a special experience and one that I'll never regret, I knew that none of the four sororities were my home. After formal recruitment was over, I immediately got involved with the process of becoming a sister of Sigma Sigma Sigma.

As soon as I began learning about Tri Sigma, it felt like home. I connected with every sister on the consultant team and all the sisters from different chapters across the country that came here to welcome us.

All of my new sisters that I was meeting from all walks of life were so dedicated to our goals. It was amazing to see everyone genuinely care about this organization and each other, and everyone was willing to work hard to succeed.

I've been so incredibly lucky and blessed to be a part of this organization and be able to watch my sisters discover their passion for Tri Sigma. We came together for what we love, and we've all invested our hearts in our sorority. Joining this sorority when it was so young and fresh gave me the ability to help my fellow charter sisters set the standards for future classes and sisters.

My sisters and I share such a passion for Sigma Sigma Sigma and watching it grow and flourish. There's nothing like feeling love and support from your sisters, your friends, your family. I finally found my home, and I've never been happier.