New Member Retreat 2013

Our post today is written about our annual New Member Retreat, a staple in Tri Delta, in which the entire new pledge class travels together for a weekend of bonding with their new sisters. This year our event was hosted in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and lead by our amazing New Member Educator Courtney Mauldin (pictured above right). Courtney was slated into her position as a Freshman, which is almost unheard of in Tri Delta. She exemplifies all the characteristics one would want in a leader for future Trideltas- grace, strength, and a true love for Delta Delta Delta. She was the clear choice for the position lovingly nicknamed Pledge Mom, and has done a truly incredible job thus far. Thank you to today's writer Courtney, and for being such an incredible role model and for all of your hard work!

"This semester, Tri Delta was blessed with 120 girls from across the country with different backgrounds and personalities, brought together by one common interest, a love for Delta Delta Delta. These ladies have had numerous opportunities to get closer with their sisters, however they had one particular weekend to create an unbreakable bond. 

On September 20th the new members, and a select group of six older sisters, traveled to Myrtle Beach, SC for their New Member Retreat.  Lakewood Camping Resort welcomed us all with open arms and not to mention yummy doughnuts, which were a huge hit among the ladies! Hanging out in the water, getting our tan on, and taking millions of pictures were just a few of the perks of the retreat. In addition to being right on the beach, Lakewood provided us with so many great activities such as water slides, paddle boating, and much more. The new members got to learn many new aspects of Tri Delta ritual and history, and even got the opportunity to tie in our love for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital by making Halloween cards for the patients. Lastly, we did many sisterhood bonding events throughout the weekend including a sand castle building contest, hilarious skits, and of course, our fireside ritual, where the girls had a chance to open up and be vulnerable with their sisters. 

There was such a huge difference when the girls came back, and being able to feel all of the love and happiness that filled the room was something I can't even explain. Nothing is better than being able to connect on a more personal level and truly understand how special each person is. These New Members have opened up my world, and they have inspired me to be so much better of a person than I who was before. I have learned so much from being with these girls and they have made me so incredibly proud already! Thank you ladies for such an unforgettable experience!"

Delta love and LOTS of mine,
Courtney Mauldin

I would like to add a shout out to Claudia Chamberlain, the Assistant New Member Educator for all that she does as well! Claudia is additionally in her position as a sophomore and the two have made a phenomenal team in preparing our new members for their upcoming initiation and induction into our chapter. Additionally, I want to recognize the incredible hosts at Lakewood Camping Resort. I know all of the girls had a fantastic time due to the wonderful hospitality and amenities of your resort. Thank you to Lakewood for making our weekend seamless and so much fun!

Greek Camp Recap

Hi everyone! We have our very first post today from a member our new pledge class! Freshman Ellen Stahlman describes her experience at the recent Greek Camp hosted by the university to foster Greek unity, leadership, and values. Thanks to Ellen for writing this and congratulations on being voted to attend by your peers! We know you will grow to be even more of a leader in our chapter!

Ellen Stahlman and Tridelt senior Megan Early at Greek Camp

This past weekend, I had the privilege of representing Tri Delta at an all day Greek Leadership Camp! Multiple fraternities and sororities from USC nominated members to attend on behalf of their chapter. It was a great experience, and I learned so much about Greek life at USC.

The camp lasted from about 10:00-5:00 on Saturday at Camp Gravatt in Aiken, SC. When we first arrived, we were split into random groups, in which all group members came from different chapters. We participated in various team building activities, such as a low ropes course and a balancing activity. These activities provided great oppurtunities for Greek students to practice communication, cooperation, and leading/following with students outside their own chapter. Most importantly, we focused on how these skills apply to everyday life.

After lunch, the facilitators of the camp organized a workshop for us to participate in. Within this workshop, we were again divided into random groups and we discussed the good and bad stereotypes of Greek life at USC and how we can work to change the negative ones. Also, we had a "great debate" in which we discussed all aspects of Greek life on campus. Finally, we covered how though we all may come from different chapters, we share some of the same basic values and should work together to be involved in other sorority/fraternity functions and events.

I am so happy that I was nominated to attend this camp. It taught me so many things about Greek life at USC, as well as about other chapters in the NPC, IFC, NPHC, and MGC. I also got to meet many new people from other chapters, which was an awesome experience!
-Ellen Stahlman

Tri Delta Night at USC Men's Soccer Shoutout

Last night, Tri Delta adopted the USC men's soccer game to kick off South Carolina's Socctoberfest! Tons of girls came out to support the team who played wonderfully. I wanted to post this today to thank everyone who attended the game and especially the USC Athletics Department for even making this event a possibility!

Sister Spotlight- Bridget Niermeier

Thanks to Bridget Niermeier for writing this post about her amazing summer internship with Discovery Communications. Bridget is constantly driven in all that she does and even plans to spend next semester working in New York City! We're all so proud of you, and can't wait to see all that you accomplish in the future! 

"Hey yall! Here’s my attempt at squeezing my incredible summer at Discovery Communications into a short(ish) blog post to tell you all about it. What most people don’t know about Discovery is that it isn’t just the Discovery Channel. The company owns 13 networks, including Discovery, TLC, Animal Planet, OWN, Hub and more. It’s the #1 Non-Fiction Media Company in the world, and it reaches over 220 countries. I myself was an intern for TLC in the company headquarters located in Silver Spring, MD, just outside of Washington D.C. Let me just say…living in northern Virginia, I can’t think of any other place that would have made two hours of traffic every morning, and again every evening, more worth it.

As a PR major only coming out of my sophomore year, I honestly didn’t apply to Discovery having much hope; but after rounds of interviews I got a call offering me a summer internship. I couldn’t say no. The opportunity was humbling enough, but when I arrived at orientation on June 3rd, my fellow interns and I were told that 163 interns were hired by Discovery across the country out of 13,968 undergraduate and graduate students that applied. I think I sat in shock for about 12 minutes.

After bonding inevitably with the other 70 interns that would spend their summer in the Silver Spring office, learning all about the company, and of course completing the always exciting paperwork that comes with starting at a new company, I was greeted by some members of my team and together we went up to the 6th floor which is shared by TLC and the Discovery Channel. A wedding dress from “Say Yes to the Dress” hanging to my left, a trashcan filled with rejected clothing by Stacy and Clinton from “What Not To Wear” and Honey Boo Boo, sassy as always, there to greet me on my right, I found my desk ready for me right along the windows (spoiled).

On my first day, I got to attend the Discovery Innovation awards at the AFI theatre, where Discovery’s founder, John Hendricks, presented alongside Overhaulin’s Chris Jacobs. While every day was different, I was placed in charge of editorializing and distributing vertical content for TLC and Discovery Fit & Health. “Vertical Content” is content that is strategically aligned with our network programming. For example, TLC has “Bride Day” on Fridays, when most of our wedding shows are aired. I would pull blogs, images, articles, etc. and reformat them for multiple platforms such as Twitter, Pinterest, and other outlets to share with our viewers and spike audience engagement. I was also part of a domestic distribution marketing team for the summer. As a part of this team, I helped perform a SWOT analysis on Discovery’s domestic distribution campaigns, which are what we use to keep cable affiliates like Time Warner and Verizon Fios paying to include our channels in their cable subscriptions. We came up with a number of marketing suggestions and strategies, which we presented at the end of the summer to VPs and higher-ups in the company that are actually going to be implemented in 2014.

The excitement of arriving to work every day never wore off, but some days were definitely more exciting than others. I would have to say that the highlight of my summer was meeting Honey Boo Boo and family. I remember being told that there was a screening of the season 2 “Watch-n-Sniff” premier for employees downstairs; little did I know that the family was in the building. After the screening, the whole family got situated in their lawn chairs with our producers at the front of the room for a little Q&A. I must say, none of it is an act, these people are proud and not afraid to show it. I can’t think of too many instances when I’ve been so entertained. Afterwards, I got to meet the family and take pictures. For you loyal viewers who know what I’m talking about, the cheese balls were out, and Uncle Poodle is just as adorable in person. 

There were numerous speakers throughout the summer, my favorite being the President and CEO David Zaslov, a regular looking guy in jeans and a button down running one of the most innovative and successful companies in the world. I got to tour C-SPAN and attend the Cable Show where every network and cable provider you can think of was there. I REALLY lucked out, because Shark Week happened to fall on my last week at Discovery. We celebrated with a bit of a Shark Week festival which included Shark Week manicures (yes, during work), pictures with Chompie, free shirts, Snuffy the Seals, Cold Stone cartons, fish tacos and a catered lunch from Salsaritas, boxes of special Shark Week Cupcakes from DC Cupcake and so much more.

I don’t think I would be able pick one favorite thing about my experience as a Discovery intern. From the people, to the special privileges and opportunities I was presented with, to the unique and meaningful work I did while I was there, I don’t think that I could have asked for a better summer. I really do encourage people to go for things even if they seem out of reach, because you never know if you might be wrong! I sure was, and now I have opportunities awaiting me that I never thought possible."
-Bridget

Tri Delta is....

Hi to all of our Delta Diaries readers! We made this video to go on the home page of our brand new website that launched recently, and I thought I would share it with you all today. It was such a good time to film (lots of outtakes!) and we all hope you enjoy it. Delta love!

Sister Spotlight: Mari Kate Freeman and Suzanne Gowan

Mari Kate and Suzanne, from left to right

Hi everyone! Our post for you today is written by Mari Kate Freeman on behalf of herself and Suzanne Gowan, both juniors, who spent part of their summers volunteering at Camp Debbie Lou. Our chapter recently started a philanthropy project with Camp Debbie Lou last semester, as it is a South Carolina local camp for children with childhood cancer and their families. Mari Kate and Suzanne are both absolutely perfect for a position like this with their fun-loving and generous personalities, not to mention great passion for this cause due to their experience with St. Jude through Tri Delta. Congratulations on such a wonderful opportunity girls and thank you for representing our chapter so well by volunteering for such a truly incredible organization. Read on to learn more!*

"Due to Tri Delta’s involvement with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, a representative from Camp Debbie Lou, a summer camp for children with cancer, came to our chapter to ask us to be a part of a fundraising effort for the camp last spring. The representative briefly described Camp Debbie Lou, and then showed us a video to give us a better idea of where our time and money would be going. My best friend, Suzanne, and I were especially moved by this video, and we had been talking just the previous night about how we wanted to do something meaningful with our summer. That night after we heard the man speak at chapter about Camp Debbie Lou, we went to their website and decided we wanted to volunteer. For those of you who don't know about St. Jude, it is a pediatric treatment and research facility focused on children's catastrophic diseases founded by Danny Thomas in 1962.  All of their services are provided free to their young patients.

When June 19th rolled around, Suzanne and I packed our bags and headed to Latta, SC, a place that would very soon become special in our hearts. Upon volunteering for Camp Debbie Lou, we didn’t really have any idea about the size of the camp or what the volunteers would be like. We came to learn the camp was created in 2004 in loving memory of Deborah Lou Richardson Page who lost her battle with central nervous system lymphoma at age 53. Many of the volunteers for Camp Debbie Lou are part of the Richardson family who have dedicated a significant part of their lives to continuing the nurturing and inspirational spirit of Deborah Lou. What is unique about this camp in comparison to others for childhood cancer is that the entire family gets to spend a fun-filled weekend on the beautiful ranch.  In other cancer camps, only the diagnosed child gets to attend. Camp Debbie Lou serves as a getaway from the immense stress cancer places on an entire family when a member is battling a life threatening disease. Camp Debbie Lou’s motto is “fun, love, and laughter,” and these are exactly the three attributes Suzanne and I came to realize pervade every acre of this beautiful camp. 

Whereas Suzanne predominately worked at archery and water boats, I was assigned to go-carts and the craft room for the week. The kids made it a point to soak Suzanne with their water guns on the boats daily, while I helped children make scrapbooks that depicted their time spent at camp. Suzanne and I created an activity of our own where we would take all the campers out at night, divide into two teams, and see who could catch the most toads. The children darted in every direction, catching as many as thirty-five frogs and toads in one night! Throughout the week, Suzanne and I grew extremely close with the kids who inspired us with each of their unbelievably good attitudes, unique personalities, and incredibly moving stories. It was such a blessing to get to know these precious children and to help them escape from the doctor’s appointments and chemo treatments, even if it was just for a short while. 

This experience was presented to us through Tri Delta, and has created a more personal connection to our philanthropy with St. Jude and childhood cancer. Suzanne and I will now be especially motivated in our philanthropic pursuits since we will be doing so for the children we came to know and love at Camp Debbie Lou. We are both so grateful to have shared this experience together, and hope volunteering at Camp Debbie Lou will become a tradition among the Alpha Lambda chapter. We would never have had this opportunity without Tri Delta, and this experience is synonymous with what being a Tri Delta means- which is being a part of something bigger than yourself."

-Mari Kate Freeman

*you may notice some photos originally accompanying this post are missing. They have been removed due to liability issues with not exposing the campers. However the post is exactly the same! We apologize for the changes. 

www.uscdeltas.com

Hi everyone! Today I have a really exciting announcement to share with you all from Tri Delta. All summer, Anna Drew Jackson and I have been working on creating a brand new website for the Alpha Lambda chapter, and after lots of ideas and revisions it is finally finished! 

A sneak preview!

If you are interested in going to our new site, you can visit www.uscdeltas.com. Be sure to check out all of the new really unique features on every page! Our updated site will make it easier for everyone to stay connected, including an improved contact us form and links to all of our other social media pages. I hope you all like the revamped site- enjoy!

-Ashley Claussen