Membership: Finding Infinite Possibilities

Finding Infinite Possibilities

By Judy Barnhill, Tennessee Beta Zeta, Southeast Region Membership Consultant

On a beautiful starlit evening in July 2019, we waited breathlessly for our newly installed International President, Judy Ganzert, to reveal her theme and logo. The Sisters everywhere showed that they were “great big bundles of potentiality.” Sisters learned that they truly had the potential to create new ways to share altruism, install new members, and time when the logo is revealed is always a special time.

I don’t know about you, but my first thought when I heard “Infinite Possibilities” was, “Hooray! This is great! It’s short and sweet and will be easy for me to remember.” Who could have known what an impact those two words would have on our organization in the months that would follow.

Hearing the words of the theme and the challenge President Judy gave reminded me of a song I learned as a child. Some of the words are: I am a promise I am a possibility I am a promise with a capital P I’m a great big bundle of potentiality! The year 2020 with COVID lockdowns, cancellations, and mask mandates made that a year like no other we had experienced. Those events gave Alpha Delta Kappa sisters many opportunities to show that they really were up to the task and would find “infinite possibilities” to be something we experienced each and every day. Not only did chapters meet the stated challenges from President Judy, sisters all across our organization went above and beyond to discover and implement new ways to accomplish these goals. invent different ways to keep membership alive and well. Chapters and sisters truly embraced the challenges of our unusual year. I’d like to share some with you. Florida Alpha Sigma’s Co-presidents Karen Lakin and Mary Carpenter made the decision to carry on all the components of their meetings via Zoom. Guest speakers made their presentations virtually as well. Their yearbooks became digital and allowed each member to edit and update from the safety of their personal computers. Manitoba Alpha Delta Kappa’s Provincial President Sheila Stark-Perreault and Provincial President-Elect/Membership Consultant Sue Marlatt orchestrated a “Membership Mingle” called Bags and Tags. Members received all the supplies they needed to create gift bags and tags along with a special bag of “Snowman Soup” to enjoy while they created these holiday gift bags. Sue reported they even had a drawing for a special gift with extra tickets when a member registered for this event and brought a friend. Madeline Bosma, Colorado Alpha Iota, was charged with creating a virtual program when very few chapters in her area had mastered virtual meetings. Since Madeline had recently returned from a trip to Mexico, she contacted sisters in Mexico