Kappa Quill Spring 2020

Letter from the Executive Director Dear Sisters & Friends of Kappa Delta Phi NAS, Some days it is hard to believe that I have been a sister for over nine years. I officially became a sister of Kappa Iota chapter on December 4, 2010.

What is even harder for me to believe is that this May will mark will my eighth year working on the Board of Directors. If you would have told me nine years ago I would be where I am today, preparing for the next leg of my Kappa journey—stepping into the role of Executive Director—I would not have believed you. I decided to join the board initially for two reasons—one, I knew my time as an undergraduate member was far too short (I joined as a junior), and two, I want to give back to the organization that had given me so much. The last seven years of serving on the board have given me so much more than I can possibly give back to the sisterhood. I have gained life-long friends (including my best friend), I have gained the knowledge of how to run an organization, the confidence in myself to be able to run it, and the ability to be a good leader.

I’ve also gained a deeper understanding of what our letters mean and what it means to be a sister. Each position I’ve held has helped to give me a working knowledge of how the sorority operates; it is part of a bigger picture and each position has its own unique set of challenges and lessons along the way.

What has been more important than the positions I’ve held that have shaped my journey, are the people who have shaped my journey. I have been incredibly blessed to work with some truly amazing and inspiring women, and there is something so empowering about working with a group of women who share the same ideals working towards the same goals. In addition to being blessed to work with so many amazing women I have been blessed with three amazing mentors during my time serving on the board. Mentors are important to our growth and development as a person. A mentor is someone you can look to for guidance, someone who has walked a similar path to the path you are on, and that can provide you with valuable insight and advice. I’d like to take a moment to highlight the three women who I consider my mentors and how they have helped to guide and prepare me for the next steps in my Kappa journey.

My first mentor on the board was Jenn Shipp. Jenn took me under her wing when I was a brand new board member, when I was timid and still learning the ropes. Jenn remembered what it was like to be the new person and went out of her way to make me feel welcomed and like a valued part of the team. Her kindness is what kept me around those first couple of years.

She encouraged me to find my voice and my fit. As our friendship has blossomed she has continued to push me to take on

new roles with her kind words of encouragement.

Jenn, you are genuinely the kindest person I know and has been my biggest cheerleader for all things Kappa. I know if I ever need anything in life that Jenn will do whatever takes to help me out.

The next woman I would like to highlight is our president, Andrea McKevitt. Andrea also took me under her wing when I was a young board member, making me feel welcome and encouraging me to step out of my comfort zone. She was a tremendous support when I stepped into the role of Vice President of Membership, and helped guide me through a position that was brand new to me. Andrea’s devotion to our organization is second to none, she will do anything to make sure our organization and those around her succeed.

Andrea has shown me that every problem has a solution, but sometimes you just have to approach the problem differently.

The last but certainly not least is Liz Jason. Liz has taught me so much through the years it is hard to even know where to begin. The biggest and most important thing I have learned from Liz is that the ability to be an effective leader was in me all along, and I had all the tools I needed, I just didn’t know it yet. Liz helped me to find the confidence; I would ask Liz what I thought was a simple question and she would answer me with a question like “What do you think?” or “How do you want to proceed?” What I didn’t realize at the time is I knew the answer to whatever I was asking and she knew I knew the answer. As you pass the torch to me, Liz, I hope I can make you proud in what the sorority can accomplish next.

To me a mentor is many things. It’s someone you can turn to for guidance, it’s someone who will push you when you need it and cheer you on when you don’t. It’s someone who will help you put the pieces back together when you try and sometimes fail. It’s someone who knows when to just listen and someone who knows when to advise. A mentor is more than just a friend and confidante, they are someone you can look up to and model yourself after. I hope that those who I have tried to take under my wing are able to take away something valuable like I have with mine. I hope that everyone in their life is able to have at least one amazing mentor that helps shape them. I have been lucky enough to be blessed with three.

In Kappa,

Amanda Roberge, Executive Director

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Table of Contents

Pg. 08

Pg. 13

Mentoring Matters

 Chapter Reports

Our National Board members discuss the importance of having a mentor for your personal and professional growth, and the individuals who impacted their lives.

Find out what your fellow chapters were up to during spring semester and get inspired for the upcoming school year!

Letter from the Executive Director.......1 Letter from the President..........................3

2020 Important Dates

NGLA Recap....................................................4 AFA Recap.......................................................5 Philanthropy Update............................... 6-7 Mentoring Matters...................................8-11

Due April 30 | Visit KappaDeltaPhiNAS.org for the full application process May 29-31 | Jackson, NH

Letter from Kappa Delta Phi.................12 Chapter Reports....................................13-25

July 24-26 | UMass Lowell

Alumnae Spotlight................................26-27 Cooking with Jeanette............................. 27

November 14 | Univ. of Southern Maine

Alumnae Association.................................28

Follow us on social media!

Facebook @kdp.nas | Instagram @kdp_nas | Twitter @KDP_NAS

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Letter from the President Dear Sisters, I hope this letter finds you in good health and ready to finish up another amazing semester. For those of you that are finishing up your last, I hope that you are taking it all in and wish you luck in your future endeavors.

Each year we are tasked with taking a look at how we can connect our Kappa Life with our Real Life. Knowing that you can take the skills that you have learned or fostered over the years from Greek life and apply them to real life is just a piece of the puzzle. One piece is mentorship.

What does it mean to be a mentor and what does it mean to be a mentee? For me, it comes down to the idea that you are willing to take what your mentor has to give you and turn that into workable information for yourself. Over the years, I have had many mentors, whether it is a fellow teacher as I embark at a new school, or a fellow board member as I take on a new position. I often think back to the ten years that I have spent on the board, ten years of finding my place, learning a skill and then challenging myself to learn another new skill and move forward from there.

When I first joined this board, we did not have a true mentorship program—it was more of an unspoken guideline. If you saw something in someone that you wanted to foster, you helped them find their way. I am still not really quite sure what the National Board saw in me at the time, but I am thankful that they saw something. With the help and guidance of Elizabeth Jason and other board members, I became the board member I am today. Countless conversations talking

about where I fit, how I fit and what I brought to the table helped me to learn and grow, as our organization learned and grew. At times, Liz had to give me hard truths about my abilities and ask me to dig deep, of course, but that’s what a good leader/mentor does. They challenge you, they push you, they drive the boat for a little while and then let you take over. Were there times when I wanted to scream back and say, “I just can’t do this. I am not cut out for this”?—of course.

What we have to remember about being mentored is that the goal is to produce a better you, a more refined you, that will keep moving forward.

Be coachable, listen and take it all in, even if you don’t take the full direction your mentor wants you to, listen. What they say may be more important than what you do. We all have skills that help us in our everyday life, we all have a comfort zone we love to live in. Don’t be afraid to push yourself out of that comfort zone and listen to those around you when you are struggling. We as Greek Life leaders learn skills that help us to be Real Life leaders. Take the skills you have learned at your chapter, and allow others to help you foster them.

“Uncoachable kids become unemployable adults. Let your kids get used to somebody being tough on them! That’s life, get over it!” —Patrick Murphy, Alabama Softball In Kappa,

Andrea McKevitt, National President

Mission Statement

The purpose of Kappa Delta Phi National Affiliated Sorority, Inc. shall be to promote academic achievement, to encourage community involvement through philanthropy, and to cultivate the everlasting bonds of sisterhood. We shall fortify the values of leadership, generosity, charity, and integrity within our sisters through guidance at both the chapter and national level.

National Founders Laurie Beckwith Nancee Brearly Bridgett Burtchell Sue Caron Eileen Coombs Tricia Crosby Kathi Gleason Bonnie Griener

Karen Kulikowski Kathy Luciano Joanne Lobozzo Mimi McBride Renie Mountain Pat Ouellette Angie Parker Barbie Richard

Becky Ritter Sharon Soles Jan Spaulding Debbie Therriauly Dee Tzovarras Leslie Vartabedian Joyce Welch

Media & Materials Committee

Designer: Christina Rose Social Media: Robyn Sarette Webmaster: Brittany Baldwin Amanda Roberge Emma Wenig Liz Jason Jennifer Jackson Amanda Cronin Marysa Mitrano 03 Lindsey Morrissey Lacy Cyr

2019-2020 Meetings Recap: NGLA

by Kimberleigh Rambol, Associate Board Member

The Northeastern Greek Leadership Association Conference was an exciting opportunity for both the active sisters and the board members that were able to attend. The NGLA conference provides a wide selection of topics and speakers targeted to the issues seen not only in Greek culture, but also on the common issues on college campuses and on the relevant issues in today’s world.

The sponsors and speakers at this event provided so many resources and opportunities for our sisters to grow and create a positive presence on their respectful campuses.

Ranging from topics of suicide prevention, to inclusion on campus and in recruitment, to Honor Societies and creating more meaningful relationships with your sisters.

The active sisters were able to see many of the speakers in these sessions, but were also able to network and speak to some of the presenters of sessions that they were unable to attend. When asked about their biggest take away from the weekend, Samantha Wood said, "As a campus with a low amount of Greek support, we have the ability to advocate for Greek life on campus.”

In regards to what they were most excited to take back to their chapters, Rebekah Hall expressed, “What I am most excited to bring to my chapter and the USM community

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NGLA 2020 Scholarship Recipients Rebekah Hall & Samantha Wood, Kappa Iota Chapter

is the opportunity for growth. It is time for Greek life to fully thrive again and I now have the tools to start the shift towards more growth, not only within my chapter, but on my campus as well.”

This was an incredible experience to learn and apply new knowledge to their chapters, schools, and life after college.

Great job at NGLA girls! We hope to see many sisters take advantage of this opportunity again next year.

To learn more about the Northeastern Greek Leadership Association, visit www.ngla.org.

AFA

by Courtney Stevens, Associate Board Member The 2019 Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors Annual Meeting was held in Anaheim, California during the first week of December. The mission of AFA is to enhance its members’ abilities to foster impactful fraternity and sorority experiences. I was accompanied by my fellow board members Amanda Cronin, Liz Jason, and Alex Nestro. I was honored to represent Kappa Delta Phi National Affiliated Sorority. I wore my letters with pride and entered the conference with an eager and open mind.

Through my membership to the AFA I have discovered countless resources and made numerous connections which I believe have contributed to my skills as a chapter consultant. Prior to attending the conference, I had the chance to explore online resources. On the AFA’s website there are webinars and presentations about many topics that span from how to resolve conflict to how to recruit new members. Throughout the course of the week at the Annual AFA Conference there were dozens of workshops, lectures, and panels led by organization and campus professionals.

Meeting with other Greek Life and campus professionals attending the conference was eye-opening for me, as a new member of the National Board. It helped put into perspective how important it is for chapters to have a good relationship with their campus partners—faculty/staff advisors, Greek Life professionals, and even Conduct Officers.

The reason why it is so important for chapters to have a good relationship with these members of the campus community is that it gives you the chance to be proactive.

These professionals are there to support the student body, just like we are. We should be working in collaboration with them so that in the unfortunate event that something comes up everyone can be in the loop and we can work quickly to find a solution.

Each session focused on a specific topic. My favorite sessions were focused on leadership skills. As a leader it is your job to impact others and to let others impact you.

Being a good leader is not only about guiding and teaching others, but allowing others to guide and teach you. No one is perfect and it is important to remember that you can learn something from everyone. The women that we work with come from all walks of life and all have unique experiences.

You should learn from the experiences of others so that you have a better understanding of where they are coming from. If you learn a little from everyone, you’ll be more well rounded. Every person you work with has another piece of knowledge you can learn.

Alex Nestro (Treasurer), Courtney Stevens (Associate Board), Amanda Cronin (VP of Administration) Another session I enjoyed was about conflict resolution. I’m sure all of us experiences some sort of argument, altercation, or disagreement as an active. Unfortunately, the thing about being a group of strong women is we aren’t always going to agree. The important piece of conflict resolution that we always seem to miss is that a situation affects each person differently. In order for everyone to come away from a discussion feeling good there needs to be a safe space for people to present problems and also the solutions to those problems. The technique we used was called a “restorative circle.” During this activity each member who is willing to participate, shares how they were affected by the situation and how they believe it should be rectified.

This allows everyone’s voices to be heard. It allows for a peak inside how each member is feeling. It also allowed for people to take accountability for their actions and gives a tangible way for them to work towards a resolution. Since the conference I’ve been able to conduct a restorative circle myself and it was overwhelmingly successful. (If you’d like to learn more about this, join Alex and myself for our breakout sessions!)

Spending time at AFA taught me that even as a working professional there is always more to be learned. You can learn through conversation and the experiences of your peers. Not everyone has the same experiences but when people share the difficult scenarios that they’ve encountered it can prepare us for a similar situation in the future.

So even if you don’t think it applies to you now, it may be applicable in the future. It was inspiring to see the pride that people had for their organizations and the students that they work with. It reminded me how lucky I am to be able to work with such incredible young women.

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Philanthropy Update: American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Hello Sisters, Philanthropy is one of the cornerstones of organization, and each year I am amazed with the work that our membership accomplishes in their communities. From walks to service trips to fundraisers, it seems like every year that you all accomplish more than the previous. This marks our third year working with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention; we have accomplished so much in our first two years working with the AFSP and I can not wait to see what we accomplish this year, and I have no doubt that you ladies will blow everyone away again this year.

As we look to the future, my hope is that you continue to inject Kindness, Devotion and Pride into everything you do. I want for us to keep making our communities a better place because we are part of them. I want for you to continue to amaze us with all that you can accomplish.

As your Philanthropy Chair and your Executive Director, I thank you. —Amanda Roberge

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Mentoring Matters

by Liz Jason, Executive Director

Mentors are a critical part of both professional and personal development. In today’s society, everyone is constantly attached to their screens. We often forget the art of in-person communication, which is essential to being a strong leader. Through mentoring, these skills can be honed. Studies have shown that good mentoring can lead to greater career success, including promotions, raises, and increased opportunities. This is especially true for women where we may find ourselves in a space in which there are only a few other women, or perhaps, we are the only one.

In those situations, there are times where we can find that we’re overlooked, talked over or even have our ideas co-opted by our male colleagues. This can be frustrating, demoralizing and even cause burn out.

All women are, of course, different and have a wide range of strengths, weaknesses and aspirations, but certain trends do tend to come through consistently in the workplace and leadership spaces—showing a lack of self-confidence, imposter syndrome, fear of failure and a hesitancy in going for a promotion or new job. However, through the help of mentoring, women can work to overcome their own self-limiting beliefs and mindsets, which can hinder us in aspiring to reach senior and leadership roles.

It’s because of this that it is so vital that we as women strive to seek out mentors and become mentors ourselves. It can sometimes seem that finding the right mentor feels a lot like dating. You may have to meet with many different people until you find the right one. A mentor should challenge you, ask questions, open your eyes to new paths forward or force you to deal with issues you have been avoiding. The relationship needs to be built on trust and mutual respect. If your first mentor isn’t giving you what you need, it’s perfectly okay to end the mentor/mentee relationship and put your effort and time elsewhere.

For many of you, the first time you may experience being in the role of a mentee or even a mentor is in the Big/Little Sister relationship. This is the start of what is hopefully a life long journey of self-discovery and growth. Take the skills and lessons you’ve learned not only as a Big but also as a Little and use that as you move forward through the world. A successful mentoring relationship requires work and effort on the part of both the mentor and the mentee.

Finally, one of the best things you can do after you have a positive mentorship experience is to pay it forward and become a mentor. Whether it’s in the near future or further off, your experience and the lessons you learned from being a thoughtful mentee will support your ability to be a strong mentor to the next generation of young women whether that’s in the sorority or as a professional.

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Being Inspired & Inspiring Others

by Holly Garcia, Member-At-Large A mentor is defined as an experienced and trusted advisor. Mentoring involves motivation, goals, direction and success. Growing up, I’ve had many mentors and I still do as an adult. Upper classmen work as mentors to lower classmen. Bigs work as mentors to their Littles during the Affiliate Education process. As a Kappa, we all work somewhat as a mentor to others by our active involvement with our philanthropy. When it came time for me to decide between which organization to join at college, my psychology tutor was a Kappa sister and she helped influence my decision to join.

When I was active I volunteered as a Peer Advisor Leader. I was a sophomore at the time and my duties included reaching out to freshman, assisting with course work and helping them decide on what class to take the following semester. Many other Kappa sisters worked in these types of roles as resident advisors, orientation leaders and tutors. I've chosen to continue to help others as a mentor because it is rewarding to know that I am making a difference in someones life.

Since college I've worked for a public school system as a paraprofessional educator, ABA therapist and now as an Attendance Officer. I have experience working with children of all ages and while I'm teaching them I am also learning from them. For the past six years I have been a volunteer Girl Scout Troop leader starting with Daisy's (PreK-1st Grade) and following my troop up to now as Junior's (4th-5th Grade). I've also been a Faith Formation Leader at my church for four years educating 6th and 9th grade students. Lastly, I've been a High School Varsity Hockey Cheerleading coach for the past four years with 9th through 12th grade students. All different ages and all different audiences but I have found it easy to transition from age level to age level while still being able to assist these children to the best of my ability. This is a huge thing to consider especially when working with children because you want to earn their respect. While teaching, I try to keep lessons fun and age appropriate. I don't want the material to be too complex but I also don't want it to be so simple that the children don't think that I have faith in their abilities. This is a skill that can be used in Kappa during recruitment. Many potential affiliates may not be fully aware of what being in a sorority entails and some of the language could be confusing. Flashy posters and displays will draw them in but being able to properly communicate is what will keep them engaged. Active sisters should advertise what they do for the community, how they give back and what they contribute to campus. Sorority sisters are an asset to all campuses and they should be proud of their accomplishments.

I enjoying making a difference which is why I actively work as a mentor to other. Once accepted into Law School I reached out to have a mentor randomly assigned to me. This is a person that would be there to help guide me through the process of being a law student while also being available to help with course work. Out of all of the volunteer student mentors at my school, l was randomly assigned to Kappa sister and Associate Board member Victoria Hogan. That is a perfect example of how Kappa's continue to make a difference after college. Now as a second-year student, I have signed up to be a volunteer mentor and I give advice to newer students frequently.

If there is one message I can leave with you it is that you are never too young or too old to help others. Be the change you want to see in this world and get out and serve. Your mentorship will make a difference in someones life and even their future.

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Who inspired you?

Throughout our lives, we meet many people become our mentors. Whether it is an older girl on the team we are playing on, our parents, or even a co-worker. One of our first mentors in life is usually a teacher. I am sure if I asked any one, “Who is one teacher that inspired you?” they could name it off the top of their head. Maybe it is the professor teaching your favorite class this semester, or your third grade teacher that made you love reading. Mine was my eighth grade Social Studies teacher, as well as my Education Advisor in my Master’s program.

Two very different people and personalities, but they both taught me the importance of being a mentor. You need to be able to connect to those you are mentoring because they need to feel like they can trust you. Trust is not an easy thing to build, and we all struggle with showing our authentic selves at times. But once we are able to open up, mentoring those who look up to us becomes easier. I knew that becoming a teacher was becoming a lifetime mentor. I wanted students to feel they were inspired by the way I taught the classroom, and they could build trust with an adult in their life. By becoming a teacher, I grew into my authentic self. I am someone who my students can trust and open up to, and be able to grow into their true selves. The relationship of mentor to mentee does not go just one way—my students are always showing me how I can be a better teacher and mentor.

As we grow into adulthood we do not leave the mentor-mentee roles. We always need to be open to change and allowing ourselves to learn through the people around us. Growth makes us stronger, and being our authentic self makes us happier.

—Marysa Mitrano, Associate Board Member

During my undergraduate years at Husson University, I joined the dance team. I had danced my whole life, and as a little girl, I dreamed of going to Julliard. Starting on the dance team was nerve-wracking and I only knew a few of the girls. I soon found out that the coach was a Kappa Sister from Kappa Alpha Alpha chapter. This began a bond I never imagined would hold so tight. Hillary was like a big sister to me—we would stay after practices and talk and I always felt like she had my best interests at heart. She was a mentor I continue to have to this day. We catch up when we can and support each other in everything we choose. She pushed me to be a better dancer, better friend, and better leader through my two very short years of dance. A mentor in the sports realm can be a captain, coach or another teammate. Finding mentorship in my coach was special because we got to have the bond of sisterhood that no one understands. I’m thankful for all Hillary had given to me, and I’m glad I have our friendship and sisterhood to move us forward in my adult life.

—Desiree Beal,, Associate Board Member

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Female Mentorship in the Workplace It is no secret that women hold just 24 percent of senior positions globally and face challenges moving up the ladder. So how do we level the playing field? That question often leads to more questions and few answers, but there is a clear opportunity available to give yourself a leg up—you only need to seek it out: Female mentoring.

Mentoring has shown to be a key driver of success. If you are able to find a mentor that you are compatible with, you are more likely to feel supported and report being satisfied with your career. Mentoring has been found to be key to both retaining and developing women as executives and in leadership positions. In addition a female mentor can better relate to the challenges and aspirations of other females by sharing her own experiences, failures, and successes. One minor issue is that women can have a harder time finding mentors, especially ones with influence because there are more women seeking a mentor than ones available. If you have one, hold onto her!

As a Higher Education professional, I can rely on mentors such as my Big, Liz Jason, to provide me with guidance through job searches, feedback on how to approach conflicts within my workplace, introductions to her professional contacts, and thoughtful reminders that I am capable and deserving of promotions and advancement in my career. Based on my experiences, here are the top four benefits of mentorship within female career development.

1. Social Capital—Mentors Capital can provide you with professional networks to enhance your leadership and career opportunities. Mentors introduce you to other leaders in your field, alert you to job openings [often times before they are even posted], and will serve as excellent references.

2. Exposure to different ideas and points of view— view Mentors have a great deal of insight into how a business is run and in many cases will provide excellent historical

Having stumbled upon my workplace mentor unintentionally, I quickly realized how important our relationship was.

While we maintained a healthy co-working relationship, the career and life lessons she taught me are invaluable.

She taught me so much but most importantly, the power of effective communication. The way you say something to someone matters. Choosing your words carefully matters.

Responding to someone timely matters. She also taught me that sometimes you have to roll with decisions you don’t always agree with, especially when it comes to work.

I found myself going to her with all of my questions and looking for advice. She was always willing to be honest with me and guide me in the right direction. This mentoring experience molded me into the professional I am today and it’s the reason I’m so passionate about building mentoring relationships for women.

—Robyn Sarette, Associate Board Member

context. They will often be able to articulate other perspectives that you may overlook. Additionally, you can feel free to bounce ideas off mentors with no judgment.

3. A contact outside of your work team can provide a safe space. A mentor that is not affiliated with your employer can be a safe person to talk through conflicts with, before approaching your supervisor. Your mentor can provide honest feedback and additionally, can role-play in order to help prepare you for difficult conversations.

4. Moral support—Mentors support see their mentee’s potential and help them achieve their goals. They not only believe in your abilities but they will challenge you to be ambitious and seek advancement opportunities. Mentors will make sure you have the tools you need to succeed in your career and will advocate for you.

—Caitlin Daley, Associate Board Member

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Greetings Sisters, This letter has been on my mind for some time now as it is the last letter that I write as Executive Director that will be published in your newsletter. For the past nine years I have been asked to write a letter detailing the state of the Fraternity.

This year I am writing my farewell speech and it is bittersweet.

In 2005 I left the Army and came home to an unknown. I found solace in reconnecting with Brothers and Sisters of Xi Chapter online. I quickly realized there was something missing and began to form the Xi Alumni Association. As I did, I also started to volunteer with the National Board of Kappa Delta Phi and worked closely with my chapter to try and get them back on track. We held a 50th anniversary that was monumental in 2010—450 Xi Brothers and Sisters gathered at Stowe Mountain resort for a weekend that will never be forgotten. The momentum of this weekend was twofold; one, to bring together fifty years of Brothers and Sisters, and two, to invigorate Xi chapter. Unfortunately, this did not come to fruition. In 2011 I was asked to become a member of the National Board of Directors of Kappa Delta Phi. I did so without hesitation and my first vote was to dissolve Xi chapter as an Active Chapter. I was heartbroken.

Somewhere between these dates the Fraternity separated from the Sorority altogether. Although we shared letters, we no longer shared an annual convention. This was my first priority as a board member. We needed to bring these two separate but equal groups back together and work as one to further our ideals. Fast foward to 2014 and we made this happen. Our first joint convention in over five years was held at the Cape Codder in Hyannis, Massachusetts. It was rough and there was a huge learning curve, but without the help of the Sororities Board and your meetings committee it would have never happened. I had no idea what I was getting into or what was to come. The next year I was lucky enough to meet up with the new Meetings chair—you may know her as your new Executive Director, Amanda Roberge! We worked together and learned some more and pulled of another one at Sunday River Ski Resort, but change was still coming. The

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following year I was once again introduced to yet another new meetings chair, Ms. Amanda Cronin. She was tough and we fought over everything. I may have even been called the devil behind my back. Come convention, none of you knew that though. Though our difference of opinions and ideas were diverse we were still able to work as a team—the way it is supposed to be. We both hold very high standards and devotion for our respective organizations. Our duty to each organization kept us moving forward throughout these past few years. I have been able to watch Amanda grow and with convention just about set for next year I think you will be impressed with her hard work and devotion to making these events nothing short of incredible.

Here we are in 2020—two groups have moved in very different yet the same direction, have had disagreements and heated arguments but always—ALWAYS—made up, but we still hold true to our ideals to our letters and to each other, the way that family should. We are and always be Family, Brothers and Sisters!

Leaving my job as Executive Director is by far the hardest thing I have done, so far. I love both my Fraternity and Sorority as equals, but it is time for me to move on and for new Board members to prosper. I need to thank all of your Board members for taking the time to work with me, specifically Ms. Liz Jason, HBIC—she’s a rock star, as long as you stay on her good side, Ms. Amanda Roberge—the up and coming rock star, Mrs. Andrea McKevitt—my philanthropy rocker and hugging partner, and Ms. Amanda Cronin—my arch nemesis.

Without all of them none of this would have been possible.

I wish all of you the best and hope to see KDPhi and KDPhi NAS continue down the path that has been laid out in front of you. One day, one or more of you will be standing up here giving your own farewell speech and I will be honored to attend convention once again to witness that. Until then, May The Spirit Never Die. KAPPA ONCE……

Jon Kadel, Executive Director Kappa Delta Phi National Fraternity

Spring 2020

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Kappa Chi Southern New Hampshire University, Manchester, New Hampshire Our spring semester is fully underway for the sisters of Kappa Chi. This semester we chose “Fly to Outer Space with Kappa Chi” as our recruitment theme! We were all so excited for this recruitment season and took the galaxy by storm! We are taking in five amazing and joyful affiliates and are so thrilled to bring them into our sisterhood.

Along with hosting numerous galaxy themed recruitment events we have many events planned for the upcoming months! We are so excited to host a women's empowerment workshop to learn more about what it means to be a woman and be strong in our sisterhood.

In addition, we will be hosting our first Kappa Chi Gala to benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention!

Philanthropy is something each and every sister holds close to our hearts. We have spent time volunteering with the food pantry, SNHU Buddies, and Happy Birthday Visitors. Any chance to volunteer is a chance that we will take! Some of our sisters will also have the opportunity to do service over break with the Alternative Break trips to New York and the Dominican Republic! We also have the opportunity to go on a Greek Alternative Break this month to spend an entire weekend doing service with other Greek organizations at SNHU! Our fundraisers for the semester are also kicking off! In February we did Carnation Grams for Valentines Day. This is one of our favorite traditions as a chapter and we greatly enjoy raising money for AFSP and seeing the smile on everyone’s face when we deliver the flowers. We have made plans to do a cookie dough fundraiser and we will also be actively fundraised at the Kappa Chi Gala.

Every February we have the opportunity to host one of our favorite events for our campus in recognition of Eating Disorder Awareness Month, Trash Your Insecurities.

This allows us to provide awareness of eating disorders on our campus as well as be involved in our campus community! The sisters of Kappa Chi strongly recognize the importance of education on eating disorders and body image and find it vital to promote strength in mental health and body image by hosting this event.

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The sisters of Kappa Chi are eager for Convention! We are all looking forward to reuniting as well as finishing off this semester strong with a strong focus on philanthropy, sister bonds and academics.

May the Spirit Never Die! In Kappa, The Sisters of Kappa Chi

Kappa Iota University of Southern Maine, Portland/Gorham, Maine Kappa Iota has been through a lot of changes since last year. We were able to bring in two outstanding, strong Kappa women in the spring semester. We had two lovely ladies graduate in the spring and we started this fall with seven strong women. This fall we welcomed with open arms a sister from another chapter, Faith Mishkin from Kappa Rho, who affiliated in Fall 2014!

Kappa Iota also brought in three new sisters in the fall of 2019 who absolutely exemplify everything that a Kappa sister strives to be. There was also the first sister sleepover in years hosted by the one and only Rebekah Hall hosted at her house and we are hopeful that in the future we will be able to have sleepovers become more regular.

Kappa Iota has volunteered at the Greater Portland Out of the Darkness AFSP Walk and the Walk to End Alzheimer’s. We also attended the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk in October, in honor of our

late sisters Karin, Stephanie, and Sue. Other chapter volunteer events include creating alphabet flashcards with Love Letters for Literacy and participating in a “Saturday in the Park” event, where we handed out bottled water and snacks to folks who appeared homeless. Individual sisters have been working hard to complete their required 25 hours, participating in activities like advocacy around the foster care system and substance use, ASL interpreting, and the Boys’ and Girls’ Club. Collectively, we have completed 375 philanthropy hours last semester which averages 35 per sister.

We are so excited about our future philanthropy opportunities as well as fundraisers and sister bonding!

May the Spirit Never Die! In Kappa, Kappa Iota

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Kappa Lambda Husson University, Bangor, Maine This year, Kappa Lambda has been working hard to come together to build each other up as we work on changing our focus within our chapter. Our sisters have been doing various bonding activities while working together to change our Affiliate Education program, making it so that we can share our vision with potential new sisters in the future.

As with previous semesters, our chapter has been setting goals for raising money for our National Philanthropy. This has been done by our tabling efforts around school, as well as an event that is currently in the works. Instead of our traditional 5K, Kappa Lambda is currently planning a dance-a-thon to raise money to aid in supporting the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Our goal is to get the Bangor community involved while having fun together. Kappa Lambda is also in the process of bringing back our Mr. Husson pageant for a second year in a row, as last year this event helped us not only raise money for the National

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Philanthropy, but also helped raise awareness within the school about the work Kappa Lambda does.

As for bonding, our sisters have been working very hard to plan social events such as spa nights, movie nights, and even a formal. Our social events have helped us work to bring us together as a chapter and have made us be able to see even more than before the values that this sorority holds near and dear.

Kappa Lambda is proud of how we are working together to grow as a chapter, and we cannot wait to see what the rest of this school year has in store for us.

Our sisters are looking forward to see what this growth and bonding brings us in the future, and what it brings not only our chapter, but the Sorority as a whole in the year to come.

May The Spirit Never Die! Kappa Lambda

Kappa Omicron Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, North Adams, Massachusetts Kappa Omicron is ready to take on 2020! We started off our year with a Kappa Delta Fries fundraiser to celebrate the SuperBowl!

For spring semester, Kappa plans to keep volunteering at different food pantries and upholding Girls of the Berkshires, a program created by an Omicron alumna to help young girls in the Berkshire community be more powerful and confident.

As we welcome more sisters into our chapter, we have been holding many sister bonding events such as going out to dinner and having sister sleepovers! We have decorated a table with our names and have had many

movie dates. We are always looking for ways to get to know each other more and hang out with each other.

We are excited to teach the new sisters the importance of our sorority and our chapter and will miss our older sisters who will graduate and become alumnae.

We look forward to bringing in more sisters, raising philanthropy hours and awareness and making the best of the new decade of the Roaring 20’s!

In Kappa, Kappa Omicron

Kappa Rho University of Maine at Fort Kent, Fort Kent, Maine Kappa Rho welcomed three new sisters in the Fall semester and we are planning on welcoming even more in the spring with our recruitment and affiliation process! We are so excited to watch our chapter grow with all the new sisters that joined in the fall and the new sisters that we are expecting in the spring!

Again this year, we have raised awareness for our national philanthropy on our campus by participating in “Fresh Check” events in conjuncture with our on-campus counselor. We were able to educate our campus and community while raising money for the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention with the many fundraisers we have done.

We look forward to new events, fundraisers, and sister

bonding events throughout the rest of the school year as well as meeting the new sisters that will join us right before Convention 2020!

We are excited to see everyone at Convention and to hear about the wonderful things each chapter has done this year!

In Kappa, Kappa Rho

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Kappa Sigma Plymouth State University, Plymouth, New Hampshire Kappa Sigma has had a busy start to the decade! Recruitment is in full swing as we are eager to welcome more fabulous women to our chapter. In the Fall, we welcomed home three new sisters. They bring so much light to our chapter and we are so lucky to have them.

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the train to families celebrating the holiday season. This spring, Kappa Sigma is planning an Out of The Darkness Walk at Plymouth State University to bring awareness to suicide prevention.

Last semester we did our annual secret sister event before winter break. This is one of our favorite events as we all wore holiday sweaters and exchanged gifts. We have continued our weekly sister dates this semester as well.

Assigned randomly, sisters will go on dates with each other, whether it’s going to the library to do homework, going to Café Monte Alto to grab coffee or to Thai Smile for dinner. This gives us an opportunity to spend time with sisters who we don’t get to see every day.

We are saddened to say goodbye to five beautiful seniors this spring who will be graduating and starting their careers. They have all held positions within our chapter, coordinated events, and always offered a helping hand to others. While we will miss them dearly, the work they have done for our chapter will always be remembered.

They have contributed to our growing story that we will continue to share with classes to come. We wish them all the best in their new endeavors and want them to know that they will always have a home at Kappa Sigma.

Sisters also volunteered at the Journey to the North Pole in Lincoln, New Hampshire. Sisters dressed up as characters from the Polar Express and served hot cocoa on

May the spirit never die!

In Kappa, Kappa Sigma

Kappa Upsilon University of Massachusetts at Lowell, Lowell, Massachusetts Back in November, we welcomed 4 new sisters into our chapter. Even though they’ve only been active for a short amount of time, they have already made an impact on our chapter. We are very excited to watch them grow and develop into wonderful sisters and leaders in the upcoming years.

We have had a very successful recruitment period thanks to our wonderful Recruitment Chair, Emilia Roemer. We incorporated many different events this semester such as a trivia and game night, gingerbread house making, canvas paint night, a clothing drive for a local women’s shelter, and a movie night. Many of these events were new ideas that Mia had come up with and they all went very well and were interesting to potential new members and sisters alike. We have scheduled interviews for February 20th and 23rd and we will be giving out bids on February 27th. Everyone in the chapter is very excited to welcome the potential new members and begin the affiliation process very soon.

Our Philanthropy Chair, Mikaela Murphy, and Fundrais-

ing Chair, Erin Young, have been hard at work planning events to work towards our volunteering and donation goals to the national philanthropy and also many local projects. Upcoming events include, a Valentine’s day bake sale and candy grams, a hot chocolate stand, volunteering at Lowell’s Boys and Girls club, Project Smile, and Fight the Stigma.

We have also tried to get more involved on campus this semester. Our Greek Delegates, Isabella Murphy and Courtney Mayer, have set up many events through our Greek Council in order to strengthen the bonds we have with each other and other organizations on campus. We have a letter making event coming up soon that everyone is very excited about. Also coming up soon is our school’s Greek Gala and Greek Olympics, which are two events that the school plans in order to recognize and celebrate the greek community’s amazing contributions throughout the year.

May the Spirit Never Die, Kappa Upsilon

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Kappa Alpha Gamma State University of New York at New Paltz, New Paltz, New York This semester, we have been hosting many fun and Disney-themed recruitment events such as, Treat Yourself Like a Princess Self-Care Night, Disney trivia, craft night, and game night. We have had an outstanding turnout to all of our events and are looking forward to getting to know our new girls!

Last semester we gained three beautiful sisters, Sam, Kirsten and Caroline. We are excited to see how they will impact and contribute to our chapter! Also, at the end of last semester we had a successful fundraiser with our brothers called Pie-a-Kappa. Students and faculty could donate to throw a plate of whipped cream at the face of a Kappa! All of the proceeds were donated to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and the brothers’ Philanthropy, Homes for Our Troops.

We hosted an exciting Alumnae weekend and many alumnae came to visit. We spent quality time bonding and exploring New Paltz. We started the weekend with

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‘Dunkin and Chill’ and a lunch outing and ended with a formal dance. A big thank you goes out to Julia, our Alumnae Secretary, for planning such a fun weekend!

So far this semester we have been raising money for our local Philanthropy, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). We conducted an online BINGO board fundraiser on social media for friends and family to donate. We also teamed up with Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity for a Cancer Sucks lollipop fundraiser. The money raised was donated to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and LLS. So far this semester we have already raised $777 for LLS! We have many sisters graduating and student teaching after this semester. We send our best wishes to Grace, Nicole, Felicia, Rebeca, Maria, and Meghan!

We cannot wait to see what life has in store for you!

In Kappa, Kappa Alpha Gamma

Kappa Alpha Iota Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, Pennsylvania The sisters of the Kappa Alpha Iota chapter are hard at work and looking to create many more memories this upcoming semester. Spring recruitment is approaching and we’re doing Barbie as our theme. We’re hoping that potential new members recognize the impact that the doll figure has on society, and that they can make the same impact in their own lives as well. We can’t wait to continue growing as a chapter both in numbers and sister bonds through various events this semester!

forward to a fun day reconnecting with old members.

Our sisterhood chair is planning a bunch of fun activities for this semester such a tie-dye, yoga, secret valentine exchange, de-stress for final weeks and a Big/Little puzzle piece activity. In the beginning of April we have the university’s greek week celebration full of games. Come springtime we have Founder’s Day and we’re looking

We look forward to seeing everyone and celebrating their accomplishments at Convention! May The Spirit Never Die.

Last semester we logged nearly 360 hours of community service and we are looking to reach 500 total hours of community service. We hope to raise money for our philanthropy as well as the Australian wildfires that occurred over the winter break. We also are looking forward to Relay for Life to support our sisters who have lost friends and family due to cancer.

In Kappa, Kappa Alpha Iota Chapter

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Kappa Alpha Nu University at Albany, Albany, New York

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The sisters of Kappa Alpha Nu are continuing to enjoy this school year while working hard to strengthen our presence on the UAlbany campus, excel academically and raise money for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. This semester we will be celebrating our five year anniversary on the University at Albany campus! We are excited to announce that we have 21 active sisters on campus after having nine sisters join last semester. We currently have four sisters on our college Panhellenic Executive Board as vice president, treasurer, secretary and academic chair. Sadly, this spring, 12 of our active sisters will be graduating from the University at Albany. We are sad to see them go, but we know they will do wonderful things after graduation.

in which our sisters were able to demonstrate our passion for mental health and stress management and our devotion to raising awareness for suicide prevention.

We are also hosting another program with our Sexual Advocacy Center on campus to create awareness about sexual violence and protection on our college campus.

This April, we have organized our first ever celebration of Stress Awareness Month. This will include programs on motivation, stress awareness and management, and wellness tips. We are looking forward to attending our upcoming events that support our philanthropy such as our bake sales, fundraisers, and community service events including our participation in the Out of the Darkness Walk.

Our sisters are continuing to excel academically as more of our sisters are being inducted to honor societies on campus such as Gamma Sigma Alpha and Rho Lambda. We also have been working very hard through recruitment by planning many exciting events on the UAlbany campus to grow our sisterhood. We recently held a program in which we had a professional come in and conduct a session on mindfulness and meditation

As our sisterhood continues to grow, our bonds continue to strengthen, and our sisters continue to excel, we look forward to the rest of this semester and seeing everyone at Convention this year.

May the Spirit Never Die! In Kappa, Kappa Alpha Nu

Kappa Alpha Xi Utica College, Utica, New York Kappa Alpha Xi, at Utica College, has had quite the year! Over the fall and spring semesters, the sisters have done and participated in many events on and off campus.

During the Fall Semester we held our annual Pizza Taste Off event, where we raised over $750 for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention! For this event, our Philanthropy Chair and committee went around to local pizzerias and asked for donations. Then the community was able to come, taste all the pizzas, and vote on their favorite parts of a pizza. We also collaborated with Active Minds, on a walk for suicide prevention where we walked the UC mile, and this walk will now be done yearly! We also participated in two more walks in the fall semester, a diversity walk that took place on campus, and a community Out of the Darkness walk for AFSP! We also held numerous tabling’s and bake sales on campus!

Outside of our philanthropy, some of our sisters participated in the Red Watch Band, where they were CPR certified and had alcohol training! One of our sister’s has spent many hours working in a food recovery pro-

gram, and some of our sisters have been volunteering in schools. Every fall semester Utica College’s Greek community put on a midnight breakfast where we serve breakfast, hold performances, and provide fun activities for other Utica College students.

For the current spring semester, we have our second big event in the works! Our philanthropy chair has officially visited many of the local businesses for donations for our Mystery Prize Board where the Utica College community gets to pick a number and get the prize that goes along with the number.

We look forward to the rest of the semester, including strengthening bonds with current sisters and the new sisters we welcome. We are excited to carry out our plans for philanthropy and fundraising and continuing to connect with the college campus and the community around us. We wish all the best to the other chapters and colonies, and will see you at Convention! May the Spirit Never Die! In Kappa, The Sisters of Kappa Alpha Xi Chapter

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Kappa Alpha Omicron Colony

State University of New York at Oswego, Oswego, New York

Congratulations to Kappa Alpha Xi on chartering and to the newest colony Kappa Alpha Pi! Our colony would not be here without Kappa Alpha Xi’s amazing love and support throughout our journey.

The Kappa Alpha Omicron Colony has changed a lot since our first convention last spring. Over the summer our President, Treasure and Affiliate Educator attended the colonies' first-ever Summer Leadership Retreat. It was a pleasure to learn much more about other chapters, the way they run things, and gain some valuable advice.

This semester began our recruitment process with our schools National Panhellenic Council along with nearly doubling in size and taking in an affiliate class of 12 wonderful girls. We started fundraising early this fall and have already raised $600 while continuing to raise more money each day. The sisters and affiliates also participated in an American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Walk taking one step at a time to bring more awareness to this great cause. At this moment we are in the process of planning a walk to spread awareness for Stomach Cancer that will take place throughout the SUNY Oswego campus.

The Kappa Alpha Omicron Colony is striving each day, not for perfection, but progress! Every day we are

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reminded how an organization can change someone's life and we are truly grateful. Our goals for the future are to maintain our openness, spread recognition for our national and local philanthropies, and hopefully charter!

Kappa Alpha Pi Colony Union College, Schenectady, New York Since Kappa Alpha Pi Colony’s founding last semester, our eighteen sisters have been hard at work sorting out the logistics and direction of the sorority. In addition to holding elections and forming committees, the last few weeks of our fall term were spent drafting, reviewing, and approving our Constitution and By-Laws. It also saw the planning, advertising, and launching of our pie bake sale, marking our first fundraising event.

This current semester, our sisters have been holding mixers with other Greek organizations on campus. We have also been planning many new philanthropy and fundraising events for the term. Some philanthropy projects that are in the works include a lip sync battle event, where participants can sign up and lip sync to songs in front of a judging panel, and a Bra Pong event, where students can not only pay to throw ping pong balls into bras, but buy baked goods too.

All of our profits will be donated to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. As for our fundraising projects, we intend to hold a Valentine’s Day themed-event where chocolates, baked goods, and flowers will be sold to raise money for our sorority. Additionally, our sisters will be holding study hours, open to everyone on campus, every week.

ing other organizations set up their events such as Skate for Alex, where students can ice skate in honor of a lost student, and with the APO Gala for Australia, which will help raise money for koalas threatened by the wildfires that are currently ravaging Australia. Lastly, there will also be days dedicated towards sister bonding activities, such as having spa nights or spending the day volunteering together!

We are so excited to take part in all of the projects and events for this term and strengthening not only our ties to our campus and the community at large, but also to each other. We hope everyone has an amazing semester!

In Kappa, The Sisters of Kappa Alpha Pi Colony

Our sisters also will be involved with many other events throughout this term on campus as well. We plan on help-

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Alumnae Spotlight Linda MacDonald

Kappa Sigma Chapter, Fall 2009

Fall 2009. Plymouth State University. I attended my first recruitment event with Kappa Sigma Chapter and instantly knew that this is where I felt welcomed, valued, and that I belonged. I had no idea upon accepting my bid and beginning Affiliate Education that I would be getting so much more out of the Sorority than just a group of friends—which was what I was seeking during my first semester as a college student. I was gaining lifelong mentorship from the strong women around me that would, in turn, shape me to be a strong woman.

The first mentors to show me what it truly means to be a Kappa Sister were my Affiliate Educator and Assistant Affiliate Educator. They, along with the Sisters, were there to guide me through the Affiliate Education process.

Any questions I had, I turned to them. I welcomed their knowledge, their support, and their friendship, and used them as models for the type of sister that I wanted to be.

As the semesters passed by, and it was my turn to become a Big Sister, I looked to those I knew best in this role—my own Big Sister and Grand Big. What advice did they give to me during Affiliate Education? What encouragement did they show me as I ran for positions on our Chapter’s Executive Board? What support did they give to me when I needed it the most? Their experience in the Chapter and at Plymouth State gave me comfort in knowing that their guidance was pointing me in the right direction.

As we welcomed new Sisters to our Chapter, I found myself running for a leadership role on our Executive Board. It was those before me—the sisters from Affiliate classes before mine, and the chapters’ Alumna who saw a tiny spark in me and lit it in to a full flame. They shared with me their experience in an Executive Board position, gave me their insight on facing tough challenges within the chapter and the memories they had of celebrating the wonderful legacy of our Sorority. Their passion for Kappa,

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even years later, inspired me, and their confidence in me pushed me in a direction that changed my life forever.

As Chapter President, I found myself leaning on these women more and more—what advice would they share with me? I reached out to members of the National Board of Directors as resources to help me be the best leader I could be as these were many different women from many different chapters from many different decades os sisters who all had stories to share and experiences they learned from. I took every bit of guidance they gave me and used it to lead Kappa Sigma.

During my college career, I was often seen as a person of resource, not only for my own sisters, but for other

Greek organizations on campus. Those looking to be in a leadership role would feel comfortable coming to me with questions or seeking my opinion on an issue they faced. I was now a mentor for those around me, and realized that it was the women in the Sorority before me who put me in this extremely rewarding position—those who mentored me were shaping me to do that for others.

I look back on my days as an active sister with so much pride, and I know that I got the most out of Kappa because I put the most in. I use my experiences from my active days still—almost ten years later—in my professional career, in my role as the Interim President of my Chapters’ Alumna Organization, and in my day-to-day life as a mother, partner, and friend. A unique characteristic of a Sorority is cherishing the rich history of those who came before you while shaping the future for those who come after you. Never forget to take advantage of that.

In Kappa, Linda MacDonald

Cooking with Jeanette Texas-Size Blueberry Muffins 3/4 cup margarine 1 1/2 cups sugar 3 eggs 3 cups flour 3 teaspoons baking powder 3/4 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup milk 3 cups fresh blueberries Cinnamon sugar, to top

Cream margarine and sugar.

Add eggs and blend. Sift dry ingredients together.

Grease large muffin tins and fill almost to the top.

Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes. Top with cinnamon sugar.

Enjoy.

Makes 12 large muffins.

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Kappa Delta Phi N.A.S. Alumnae Association Dear Sisters of KDPNAS, Inc. Welcome to a new year and a new decade filled with endless possibilities and opportunities. Personally, I have long since stopped making resolutions. I never did lose all the weight I wanted to. never managed to save all the money I needed. I never lived in a large, palatial house. I never got to travel extensively. I’ve never owned anything of real value and I never became the actress I studied for and dreamed of becoming. A power much greater and stronger than I had a different path mapped out for me, and since I am turning sixty-five this year, I can say that it is okay. Life experiences clearly outweigh hopes and dreams in each of those categories except one. I still want to be an actress.

You’ll note that I never said I failed. Life and circumstances have a way of opening your eyes and heart to opportunities you may never have thought possible. I met many people along the way who became role models and mentors, and the teachings they left me with became a part of my personal fabric. If you are a people-person that curing process just seems to happen naturally, and eventually roles are reversed and you become the teacher, the mentor someone else may be looking for.

So, what is a mentor? Claire Diaz-Ortiz, co-author of the "One Minute Mentoring" and former Twitter executive shares, “While most people agree that having a mentor is a good thing, they don’t know how to find one or use one.

And despite widespread approval for the idea of being a mentor, most people don’t think they have the time or skills to do so.” What did Claire do? She joined forces with “Legendary Management Guru” Ken Blanchard to combine their knowledge and provide a fail-safe approach to intergenerational mentoring providing insight into the importance of mentoring and “encouraging them to pursue personal mentoring relationships.” They use Blanchard’s parable format to explain the brilliant why and wherefor of effective communication and relationships across generations. It is great for individuals and companies alike. I am a fan of Ken Blanchard’s One Minute Series. I am also

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a devotee of Og Mandino’s books albeit they are much older. They are also written in the style of good parable and from personal experience.

For me, real mentoring came to me as an undergrad doing my student teaching. I was blessed to be able to work with one of my favorite high school teachers. Mr. T knew me and knew what I was capable of. He was genuine in his approach and realistic in his hopes. To this day, I love the man dearly for all that he instilled in me. Mrs. S, affectionately known to her students as “Mom” was also a huge influence on my decision to go into education.

Some of my professors and admired businesswomen at UMPI were both mentors and Honorary Sisters of KDPNAS, Inc.—Dr. Ruth Anderson, Dr. Rebecca Herrick Wambaugh, Ruth Reed Mraz, Mary “Mike” Carter and Joanne St. Onge. They have all since passed, but what they gave me can never be erased. I’ve had five young student teachers under my tutelage, and I can only hope that I gave them what they needed to move forward in their careers.

In my many roles within our beloved Sisterhood, I hope that I have shown strength and tenacity. I also hope that I have given you some of my spirit, my love and my devotion. My mentors were and still are my sister-contemporaries and of course, the Brothers of KDP, Inc. These days I find myself gradually phasing out of a leadership role, but that doesn’t mean that I am done. Not yet.

My advice to you is move on with your dreams and goals.

Believe in yourself and in others. Be the kind of person you hope to be remembered as. Find yourself a mentor and don’t be afraid to become a mentor for as our motto espouses, May the Spirit Never Die. In the spirit and love of KDPNAS, Inc., Susan Dyer Taylor, Executive Director Emeritus President KDPNAS Alumnae Association, Inc. Kappa Mu, 1975

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Show off your Kappa Pride Contact Merchandise Chair at merchandise@kappadeltaphinas.org