I Spy... Sisters in the Community

It was fun to see another sister in the Tallahassee Democrat! Amanda is the Education & Exhibitions Director at COCA - Council on Culture & Arts for Tallahassee/Leon County. She supports Alpha Chi Omega's mission of celebrating the fine arts everyday!

Twenty-five years of Sisterhood

Please plan to join us when we celebrate Beta Eta's 82nd anniversary (founded at Florida State University for Women on March, 29, 1929).

and

Sisters from chapters around the country who have enjoyed twenty-five years as Alpha Chi Omegas.

We look forward to the 25-Year Pin Ceremony and sharing Wisdom, Devotion, Achievement with many Real. Strong. Women.

March 29, 5:30 at the Beta Eta house. Please RSVP to jennysuebutlerATgmailDOTcom

I Spy... Sisters in the Community

Nice to see Terri (Epsilon Zeta, Auburn) pictured in the paper for her work accomplishments!

American Honda has recognized Mike Grindberg, Terri Rutledge and Thomas "Obie" Oberman of Proctor Honda as winners of the Council of Sales Leadership Award. Honda's Council of Sales Leadership Award acknowledges the achievements of the top-performing sales professionals in the nation, both in volume and customer service. Grindberg was named a Gold Master for the 11th year, Rutledge earned Silver for the ninth year

Read more: Milestones | tallahassee.com | Tallahassee Democrat http://www.tallahassee.com/article/20110220/NEWS01/102200321/Milestones#ixzz1GURuQqfB

Help Us Help Refuge House

As we mentioned in post recapping the 2011 Alumnae Panhellenic Scholarship Luncheon and Auction, we are proud to be the winners of the 2011 Philanthropic Grant! In our grant application, we answered this question:
How would your alumnae chapter use the grant on a local level to further your philanthropic efforts?

We plan to expand our work with Refuge House to include additional contributions that will ease the lives of the mothers and children sheltered there. Refuge House is an amazing resource in our community, and unfortunately, it continues to be under-funded. After speaking with Diane Jefferson at Refuge House about their immediate needs, we would like to request the funds to purchase new pillows, twin sheets and towel sets. They give everyone new bed/bath sets when they arrive (and the women/families take the items with them when they leave) so they always have a need for these items. 

How can I help?

- Donate a twin set, a pillow or a towel set for Refuge House by bringing them to any of our AXO alumnae events this spring:

 * AXO FSU Founders' Day Dinner Tuesday March 29

 * Hall of Commitment for FSU AXO Seniors Sunday April 10

 * Salad Days Monday May 2

- Or bring your items to an Alumnae Panhellenic event.

- Bargain hunt for us. If you see a great price on any of the items, either locally or online, please comment below or email us!

The donation drive will culminate on May 2nd. We've invited Diane from Refuge House to join us at Salad Days that evening, where we plan to present her with all of our contributions, and take an amazing photo showcasing your generosity!

Thank you for your continued support of Alpha Chi Omega and Refuge House!

Give and Get is Here!

Give and Get is Here!: "Enjoy 30% off from March 17-20 at Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy plus we'll make a 5% donation to a non-profit."

I chose Habitat for Humanity! Since I have been involved with the organization since High school, and have traveled to some amazing places with Gap Inc. Community Corp. to build houses for those in need. My most recent big build with Gap was in Guatemala..

Recapping the Peace Corps 50th Anniversary Celebration

On March 1st, we shared our Alpha Chi Omega link to the local Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and their plans to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Peace Corps. (See the blog post here). We thought it would be fun to follow up with a recap one of the events that week.

Friday, March 4, the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers hosted an Opening Reception for their "Art from Our Countries" exhibit, which is on display in the Reflections Art Gallery in the FSU Center for Global Engagement from March 1st through 15th. 

A view of part of the gallery.

Jennifer and fellow Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, Tiona, both served in Botswana!

Alpha Chi Omega sisters supporting our Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, Jennifer (Theta Lambda, Clemson): Amy (Zeta Upsilon, Case Western Reserve Univ), left, and Tara (Beta Eta, Florida State), right. Great work Jennifer!!

 The piece on the wall in the background is one of Jennifer's. It is a "hand-loomed, wool tapestry of a typical village day in Oodi, Botswana. Oodi village is home to Oodi Weavers. The village resides in the Southeast part of Botswana, a bit outside the capital city of Gaborone. My family also owns to gorgeous table runners from this cooperative."

We would be remiss if we didn't thank Amanda (Alpha Upsilon, Alabama) who works with COCA (Council on Culture and Arts for Tallahassee/Leon County). Amanda was instrumental in helping the Jenn's group find the perfect gallery space for their exhibit and event! Thank you, Amanda, and thank you to everyone who stopped by or attended any of the Peace Corps 50th Anniversary events!

Supporting Sisters Update

This year the Junior League collected 1,377 dresses for Operation Prom Dress — the most the group has ever collected, Preston said. The dresses were donated by League members and others throughout the community.

Read more: Update: Junior League helps spruce up prom for some local girls | tallahassee.com | Tallahassee Democrat http://www.tallahassee.com/article/20110305/BREAKINGNEWS/110303009/Update-Junior-League-helps-spruce-up-prom-for-some-local-girls#ixzz1GUX30ftY


Junior League of Tallahassee raises $55K from 'Whale of a Sale': The Junior League of Tallahassee raised approximately $55,000 from this past weekend's "Whale of a Sale," according to a JLT news release. The money raised from the event, held at the former Goody's location at the Tallahassee Mall, will help support the organization's mission of training volunteers and implementing community projects that improve the lives of children and families by helping children succeed in school.

Read more: Local briefs | tallahassee.com | Tallahassee Democrat http://www.tallahassee.com/article/20110301/NEWS01/103010327/Local-briefs#ixzz1GUZKdkTh


"The Mardi Gras Ball Variety Extravaganza," which drew about 350 people last Saturday to the Tallahassee Antique Car Museum. It was a fundraiser for the Stubbs' Educational Foundation.

Read more: Byron Dobson: Couple gives back by sharing gift of music | tallahassee.com | Tallahassee Democrat http://www.tallahassee.com/article/20110304/OPINION05/103040311/Byron-Dobson-Couple-gives-back-by-sharing-gift-of-music#ixzz1GUlRaIEC

Recapping the Alumnae Panhellenic Luncheon

We had a lovely time on Saturday, February 5th at the Alumnae Panhellenic Scholarship Luncheon and Auction. This year it was held at the Delta Zeta house, and what a treat it was to see their beautiful home.

The Delta Zeta formal living room.

Excited to bid on silent auction items. All proceeds go toward the collegiate scholarships ...

Fun items donated by Alpha Chi Omegas (clockwise): famous sugar cookies by Amy (Zeta Upsilon, Case) - a hit each year; "Girls Night In" basket from Jenn (Theta Lambda, Clemson); $100 Live Auction Pound Cake baked by Barbara (Gamma Iota, UF); "Easter Will Spring" Basket (ETE Alumnae)

We loved the pink and green decor and the lovely spring tulips on each table.

Congratulations Alpha Chi Omega collegian Whitney P (Beta Eta, FSU) on her scholarship award! 

She is pictured here with Alumnae Panhellenic Vice President, Rachel Sutz-Pienta.

Our Alpha Chi Omega group:

Standing (left to right): Linda (Gamma Epsilon, Kansas State), Margaret (Beta Sigma, Georgia), Kate (Beta Eta, FSU), Katherine (Beta Eta, FSU), Jaclyn (Beta Eta, FSU), Whitney (Beta Eta, FSU), Marie (Beta Eta's House Director), Joy (Gamma Iota, Florida); Seated: Amy (Zeta Upsilon, Case) and Barbara (Gamma Iota, Florida)

Our big surprise of the day was being awarded the Philanthropic Grant! 

We will use the funds to benefit Refuge House, our local domestic violence shelter. Look for a post coming soon on how you can help!

Thank you to everyone at Alumnae Panhellenic of Tallahassee for a wonderful event and to the collegians and alumnae of Delta Zeta for being charming hostesses!

I Spy ... Sisters in the Community

Great picture of Kristen (Gamma Iota/Beta Eta) working for "Decent Chili" (and having fun) at the St. George Island Regional Charity Chili Cook-off. Thanks to the Tallahassee Democrat for the photograph.

caption: Kristen - smiles for the camera at the Chili Cookoff in St. George Island, FL

An Alpha Chi Alumna in the Fine Arts

Anne Barngrover (Delta Xi, Denison) — Borges Poetry Contest, 1st Place (Selected by Kelly Davio) 02/07/2011

Canopy Road Blues

You just need to feel it, they all said to me,
so I let myself feel it the only way I know how—

A Florida summer turns to a Florida fall the way
colors soften at dusk or after rain. From my deck

the webs of banana spiders break like wine glasses
when swept and scattered, and beneath my window

a chorus of tree frogs croons a lonely Cajun aubade.
This story has a predictable ending. This story

belongs in a sinkhole. There are only so many times
a Southern man leaves in one season, only so many hers—

and hers—he’s shucked from the gulf shore. Tar balls,
he tells me. You’re the oyster. And I know that I’m

the hummingbird moth while everyone yelps hornet!
or butterfly! I’m the kind that rusts in a hurricane; I’ll

haunt egrets after I’m gone. And I’m the cottonmouth
slashing through wild blackberries and doveweed,

the lone ghost bike peddling down a canopy road until
I can shroud myself in kudzu, drape myself in vines,

shrink down to just a leaf or a salamander when it all
becomes too humid, when the constellations itch

like fire ant bites, pressing in far too close from the sky.
If things could just stay where they belong: cicadas

in the crab grass, Spanish moss like sorrow on wire,
his thumb on the button of skin between my hipbone

and thigh. But my bed has become a swamp of rotting
gator tail, my lover, a chupacabra I barely recognize.

All night long I cast off leaves that brown, yellow and red
before my fall. And I feel it. I feel it all the damn time.

Anne is currently an MFA candidate at Florida State University and is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio. Her poetry and prose have appeared in The Houston Literary Review, FreightTrain Magazine, Magazine Americana, Full of Crow and Poets for Living Waters among others.

Peace Corps 50th Anniversary - Support a Sister!

We have a fabulous opportunity to support our wonderful AXO ETE Treasurer Jennifer (Theta Lambda, Clemson) all this week (and month) as the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the creation of the Peace Corps! Jenn has been involved in every aspect of the planning so I hope you might be able to attend one or more of the events.

For those of you who didn't know, Jennifer served in the Peace Corps in Botswana (Africa) from 1993-95.

Calendar of Events

50th Anniversary Celebration of the U.S. Peace Corps

February 28, 2011 – April 9, 2011; Tallahassee, Florida

Hosted by the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of North Florida

Tuesday, March 1, 2011 (2 – 6pm)

Global House Party hosted by Ferdy Mazoleny (Jamaica '84). Please call 561-1011 for directions.

Kick-off for “Walk a Mile in Their Shoes” Shoe Drive (through April 3). Contact Ellen Meyi (Paraguay '02) at 891-6540 or 491-1517 and she will bring you a Soles4Souls collection box. [Collection boxes will be at Good Friends Fitness and at the Alpha Chi Omega house.]

Thursday, March 3, 2011

(11:00am – 12:00pm)

Perspectives hosted by Tom Flanagan, WFSU 88.9 FM

Tune in to listen and call-in to talk to former Peace Corps volunteers about Peace Corps and the 50th anniversary. Mark Mahoney (Chile '80 and Ecuador '77), Charlie Clark (Liberia '76), Alethea Parker (SE Peace Corps Recruiter, Cameroon '08) and Dana Brosig (Uganda '10) will be live on the radio!

(5:30 – 7:30pm)

Peace Corps Information Session and Panel Discussion, FSU Center for Global Engagement, Auditorium. Please join Alethea Parker, SE Peace Corps Recruiter (Cameroon '08) for a lively discussion on the Peace Corps and hear from former volunteers about their experience.

Friday, March 4, 2011 (6:00 – 9:00pm)

Opening Reception: RPCV Art from Our Countries

FSU's Center for Global Engagement, Reflections Gallery

Hosted by the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of North Florida

Exhibit runs through March 15

Saturday, April 2, 2011 (8:30am – 5pm)

Springtime Tallahassee Parade and Jubilee in the Park. Join RPCVs marching in the Springtime Tallahassee Parade to celebrate 50 years of service around the world. Twenty-four flags will be carried by local RPCVs that represent countries where Tallahasseans have served. Volunteer walkers and table hosts are still needed. Contact Jennifer Sue Butler Harris (Botswana '95) @ 850-559-0742 if you can participate!

Saturday, April 9, 2011 (10:00am – 4:00pm)

Peace Celebration, Midtown Tallahassee

Join the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of North Florida along with more than 200 community organizations to celebrate the great work local organizations do to make our community great!