Looking at what the media negatively depicts when they talk about Greek Life and sorority women, I feel like I am looking at another universe. The five sororities at Westminster College are nothing like that at all. The Panhellenic Community is something special here, and if my words can explain but a fraction of its positivity and greatness, then I have succeeded. To the women going through Formal Recruitment, or are possibly interested in going greek in the future, here are a couple description of what it means to be a sorority woman at Westminster College.
We want the best for each other.
Yes, we all want to find amazing women to join our individual sororities. However, this does not mean that we turn against one another. When I went through Formal Recruitment, I was afraid that I would be upsetting and disappointing the women of the sorority I almost picked. I was so wrong. Those women are still some of my closest friends, and they congratulated me on finding what was best for me. We as a community are excited for the women who go greek, and we continuously love and support our Panhellenic sisters in finding their homes, and their journeys from there on!
There is no reason why you can't be friends with someone in a different sorority than you.
One of my closest friends and I went through Formal Recruitment together, and at the end of it we realized we did not want the same thing. That is perfectly OK. Joining a sorority does NOT mean that you are only allowed to be friends with your new sisters, or that you are a part of a clique or that you popular/unpopular, as the media has negatively depicted. There is a reason why our organizations are a part of the Panhellenic Community. We may not share the same letters, but we are all Greek together.
Sisterhood is extremely important.
When you join a sorority at Westminster College, you find out that Sisterhood is one of the most important things to us. What does that mean? Well, it means something different to each sorority within their chapters, but across the board it means that we care to know and love each other. We all come from different backgrounds, different majors, different lifestyles. It is so important to get to genuinely know your sisters- and I think personally that this is the most fun part of being in a sorority. When I joined my sorority, I knew a few of them pretty well, and that was it. Now, I can walk up to any of my sisters and start a conversation, cuddle up next to them on the couch and watch Netlfix, or have a life talk and laugh and cry together. It is a bond, Sisterhood is. There is a bond within your sisterhood, and there is a bond within the entire Greek community. That friend that joined a different sorority than I did? We are still friends. I will always be there to support her, laugh with her, and smile as she talks about the home she found within her own sisterhood. We love each other. We get to know each other. We support each other. That is Sisterhood to the Greek Women of Westminster.
You will never be hazed. Never.
Every fall, the Greek community of Westminster, men and women alike, all come together and sign an Anti-Hazing contract. I am sincerely proud to say that no woman who joins my sorority, or any of the sororities on campus, will ever be forced to do something she does not want to do or that could cause her harm. Hazing is not just wrong, it is completely unacceptable here. For this reason alone, we defy the negative depictions that the media gives Greek life in general.
We genuinely care about our philanthropies.
Even still, we care about service in general. Given that we are a smaller college community, there are usually philanthropy event being held every weekend or every other weekend. We go support each other. While each of our chapters takes pride in our service to our individual philanthropies, we also see it as an honor to help each other to give back. Every spring during Greek Week, we have a service drive. In the end, it's not which sorority donated the most that amazes me- its the empty shelves at every store within a 20 mile radius, knowing that the items that used to be on those shelves are going to people who truly need them- that is what amazes me. The last few years' numbers of items donated has been breathtaking and record breaking for our Panhellenic Community. The competitions and the fun of Greek Week almost pale in comparison when you stop and realize how much we truly want to give to help those in need. Whether it be our individual philanthropies, or coming together and serve one cause, Westminster College's Greek women genuinely care about serving others.
We care about being genuine, not trying to fit in to a stereotype.
We are who we are, and we love each other more and more as we strive to become better women, better scholars, and better leaders.
Academics are on high priority.
We celebrate, support, and reward each other's academic successes. While joining a sorority is wonderful and absolutely great, we came to college to learn and to get a degree. We encourage each other to keep working hard.
There is way more to it than the cute pictures, the presents, the glitter, and the new stitched Greek letters on your shirt.
That is just the icing on the cake! Beneath it all, the Panhellenic Community at Westminster is a place of acceptance, a place of love, and a place conducive to encouraging women to achieve their best with their sisters always cheering them on. To the women who are going through Formal Recruitment, or interested in greek life, I can tell you that our community at Westminster College is different in the best way, and I hope that your experience with it is nothing but wonderful.
