Anyone that knows me knows that I rarely wear heels. It’s just not my thing. Yet, I wore heels during recruitment week as an incoming freshman at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. In hindsight, that was a really bad idea. I could barely walk home at the end of each day.

I remember wanting the houses I visited to like me. I don’t know why I thought being an extra few inches taller would help that, but I was willing to try anything (even at the expense of having to walk home barefoot as a result). You see, I care quite a bit what other people think of me. I try not to, because I know that’s no way to live, but I often can’t help it.

Going through recruitment really tested that for me. I was constantly looking for reassurance that this place I was in liked me. Did I belong? Could I find friends and a home here? I didn’t know. I wasn’t even sure that a sorority was the right place for me.

And then Delta Gamma happened. From the moment I walked out the front door on the last day of recruitment, I knew that’s where I wanted to invest my time. It was home.

It’s been 11 years since that day and I’m just as grateful today as I was then for the friendship, love and opportunities. And, at the sake of sounding too corny, it’s been one of the best decisions of my life.

To Delta Gamma, for the cramped living quarters that I piled high with anchors and the color pink.

To Delta Gamma, for the friendships you brought me.

To Delta Gamma, for hope, for strength, for life.

Happy Founders Day, Delta Gamma. ITB.