“Chi-Os were ideal partners for all occasions. They were discrete, desirable, tactful, polite, and fun… Every mom dreamed of her son coming home with a Chi Omega, a woman’s woman.” -David Letterman

In January of 2007, I was welcomed into the arms of 130 women whom I now call my sisters. Joining a sorority is not for everyone, but when I was given the opportunity, I didn’t even question it. My mother was is a Chi Omega.

Some of her very best friends are women she met at LSU in the Chi Omega house. And even though thousands of miles may separate them, she knows they are always only a phone call away.

Recruitment at SMU is a deferred process. First-year women get the fall to get acclimated to college life: classes, living in the dorms, and making friends. Recruitment was an awkward process for me because I was a legacy in Chi Omega and my cousin was in another sorority.

The rules of the fall didn’t allow me to hang out with or talk to my cousin! It was interesting to say the least.

Recruitment was for me- and should be for women- about finding a group of women who you can genuinely call your sisters; where you can be your real, honest, goofy self. I found that in the Iota Alpha chapter of Chi Omega.

Chi Omega was more than just an organization to join. Chi Omega gave me opportunities: to be a leader, to make friends that will last a lifetime. Chi Omega taught me the meaning of studying hard to play hard. It gave me the opportunity to join other organizations and to go on to lead those organizations. Many of my favorite memories from college include laughs, cries, or events shared with my sisters. My sisters were, and still are, always there to support me (even if it meant getting up at 5 a.m. to anchor the show I was producing!)

Chi Omega isn’t just through college. Chi Omega is for a lifetime. There are over 240 alumnae chapters around the country (I joined in Denver) and approximately 171 collegiate chapters. Chi Omega just surpassed Girl Scouts of America as the largest women’s organization in the country with more than 290,000 initiated members!

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Iota Alpha welcomed 51 new members Sunday afternoon! Four years ago this week I joined Chi Omega. I can’t wait for the next 40.