Saturday, November 26, 2011

November Book Exchange Meeting is a Big Hit!

Our gathering at The Java House on November 10, 2011 was a success!  We had 8 members in attendance, and conducted two business meetings for the price of one. 
       First, the short House Corporation meeting was held to resolve and vote on changes to the By-Laws.  The issues that were approved by a vote of the members attending were 1) increasing the level of expenditure that does not require Board approval, so that maintenance costs can be quickly paid when due, 2) including a "whistle-blower" clause, as recommended by National, and 3) adding a Disclosure clause, regarding possible conflicts of interest, as well, also recommended by National.
      Secondly, we conducted a regular business meeting of the Alumnae Chapter.  We discussed the possibilities for a Career Day, with the active chapter, and it was decided that we will set our sights for next year in the spring of 2013.  We also discussed doing a finals week service project for the live-in members of Sigma.  Sara Hektoen and Sarah Griebahn volunteered to coordinate with the housemother and deliver care packages to the live-ins, while others volunteered to help with the items to be included.
      We finalized our plans for the December meeting, our Annual Christmas Party, which is having a make-over this year.  We will be meeting at The Brick Arch Winery in West Branch, on Sunday, December 11, 2011, from 2-4pm.  Those who will be attending are asked to bring an appetizer to share, and beverages will be provided.  We will also be gathering donations for the Domestic Violence Intervention Project, so please bring a paper product that can be used at the shelter, as well as any hotel soap, shampoo, etc. that you may have collected and are willing to share.
     We concluded by sharing our gathered book selections for some great winter reading:  there were wonderful new novels to explore, some fun light-hearted coffee table books and recipe books were included,  as well as some great mysteries and romance novels.  Everyone agreed it was a swell evening with sisters.  We hope you can all join us for more fun in December!

Friday, November 4, 2011

Great Turnout at Annual House Corporation Meeting

The Annual Meeting of the House Corporation was held on October 10, 2011.  It was great to have so many in attendance and we added the extra bonus of an Alumnae Chapter meeting before the House Corps meeting began.  14 alumnae and 2 collegiate members were in attendance.  We were happy to welcome Kristina Sosa (Bradley University) as our newest alumnae member.

In Alumnae news, we reviewed this year's program, and changed the date of our next meeting to Thursday, November 10, 2011 at 7pm at The Java House located at 713 Mormon Trek Blvd in Iowa City.  We also approved the motion to raise the annual dues for membership to $25.00 to help defray the costs for some of our events and allow us to pursue some philanthropic ventures.  Please send your dues to Elsie Foerstner at 8 Glendale Terrace, Iowa City, IA 52245.  We will be having a membership drive phone-a-thon in November (time to be announced) and we are looking for members to help with a Career Day of workshops for the collegiate members that will be in the spring of 2012.

The report from the House Corporation Board was very encouraging.  Officers were elected:  Leslie Soule has joined the Board for 2012-2013.  The Chapter House has full occupancy and our financial obligations are stabilizing after the construction of the new house.  For more complete information, feel free to email Karen Daubenberger at karenkd5@msn.com.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Sigma Centennial a HUGE Success!!

September 30-October 1, 2011 was a wonderful weekend of celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Sigma Chapter of Alpha Chi Omega.  We had a wonderful reunion of members from every decade since the 1930s and it was an awesome experience to see two 75 year members receive recognition from our National President.
Registration at the Chapter House

The weekend began with registration at the Chapter House.  Many of our sisters had not been back to Iowa City in a long time, and the new house that was built after the tornado was the Main Attraction.  We had over 150 attendees at our Friday night Welcome Back Reception at the Old Capitol.  It was a delightful fall evening in Iowa City, and the setting was perfect for a gathering of old friends.  The IMU caterers and the staff of the Old Capitol made it all a wonderful experience for everyone.


Buffet at the Old Capitol Reception

On Saturday, there was a great turnout at the Chapter house for house tours and campus tours.  We raised over $5000 for the Sigma Rebuilding Fund from the proceeds of our Silent Auction and mostly from donations to our Star Booth.  A really big THANK YOU to everyone who honored their sisters and who helped out Sigma at the same time!
Our 75 Year Members enjoying the Old Capitol

Dee Huber Thayer greets friends at the Banquet
The Celebration Banquet
Friends from the 1960s at the Old Capitol
Some of the men who love Alpha Chis!
            The Celebration Banquet on Saturday night was a lovely way to end a fabulous weekend.  After a wonderful dinner, we were all treated to the musical serenades of the Collegiate Members and everyone joined in with some favorite Alpha Chi songs.  The video presentations were a chance to see our history in pictures and everyone was delighted to have a chance to remember their time on the University of Iowa campus.  Marsha Grady, National President, and Traci Bauer, Sigma Chapter President, addressed the crowd of about 350 people and spoke to all our hearts of Alpha Chi Omega and our traditions, values and responsibilities.  The highlight of the evening were the pin ceremonies for our 50, 60 and 75 year members.  What a delight to have these women with us!  Delores Pechman Wakefield and Dee Huber Thayer were both honored as 75 year members from the 1930s.  We are so glad everyone could join us for this once in a lifetime experience.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

House Corporation Annual Meeting

The Annual Meeting of the House Corporation will be held at the Chapter House at 828 E. Washington in Iowa City on Monday, October 10 at 7pm.  There will be a brief meeting of the local Alumnae Chapter at 7 during our casual gathering and the actual start time of the House Corporation meeting will be at 7:30pm.  Be sure to come to this meeting if you can.  You can hear all about the status of the physical property that we own at 828 E. Washington and the financial reports.  The Board is also looking for volunteers to serve on the Board of Directors.  We need your help!  We're looking forward to seeing you there.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Sigma Recruitment a Huge Success!

We are so proud of our collegiate chapter in Iowa City!  37 new members were added as sisters to Sigma chapter last week.  That number is three over quota!  The entire Greek community is thriving:  there are eleven chapters that are above total, which currently stands at 110.  There are a total of 1551 Greeks on campus now--187 more than last year. 
      "to see and appreciate all that is noble in another, be her badge what it may"
Let's all stand and give a cheer for all the new sisters, whatever their letters may be!  And if you have a moment, be sure to drop a note to the women at 828 E. Washington, and tell them how proud you are of their accomplishments.

Monday, August 15, 2011

A great time to be an AXO!

Our August meeting was a great time.  We hope that more of you will join us in the coming months.  We successfully added 3 items to the Silent Auction for the Sigma Centennial and enjoyed cool beverages and tasty snacks from New Pioneer Coop.  We reviewed the upcoming events for this year and talked about membership goals.  Our next event is the Sigma Centennial on September 30-October 1.  If you haven't already signed up to attend this fabulous event, please contact Karen Daubenberger at karenkd5@msn.com for more details.  Hope to see you there!

Monday, August 8, 2011

First Meeting Reminder

Just a quick reminder that our first meeting of the year will be this Sunday, August 14 at 1pm.  We will be meeting at Fired Up Iowa City, 520 E. Washington Street in Iowa City.  In addition to meeting and greeting, we will be discussing this year's calendar and creating ceramic Centennial contributions for the Silent Auction at Sigma's 100th Birthday Celebration.  So come and plan to be creative or cheer on those of us who will be creating.  Snacks and beverages will be provided.  See you there!

Sunday, July 31, 2011

2011-2012 Calendar

Our Calendar of Events for the upcoming year is listed below.  If you have any questions please email us at our NEW email address:  icalphachialums@gmail.com.  We will be posting specific event information about 4 weeks before each event on this site.

Calendar of Events

2011
August 14               Centennial Creations of a Ceramic Kind
                                Meet at Fired Up Iowa City,  1-3pm
                                520 E. Washington, Iowa City

September 30         Celebrate a Century of Sisterhood
October 1                Sigma’s 100th Anniversary Reunion
                                Iowa City, IA   For details go to:
                                https://sites.google.com/site/axosigma100/

October 10             Annual Meeting of the House Corporation Board
                               828 E Washington, Iowa City, 7 pm

November 12          Coffee Night and Book Exchange
                                Java House, 713 Mormon Trek Blvd, 8pm

December 11           A Brick Arch Christmas Party
                                Wine tasting and holiday merriment
                                Brick Arch Winery, West Branch
                                Time: TBA
2012
February                  Alpha Chi and the Arts
                                Celebrate McDowell Month by attending a
                                fine arts events with AXO
                                Date and time: TBA

March                      Career Day at Sigma
                                We will be hosting a career day of work shops 
                                for the collegiate chapter
                                More details to follow

April 14                   Bring Books Back and Coffee Night
                               Java House, 1575 S. First Ave, 8pm

May                        Hall of Commitment  Brunch 
                               Date and time:TBA

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Fired Up for Fall!

Our first event of the year is ready to be added to your calendars!  We will be meeting at Fired Up Iowa City, located in the former bookstore near the creek on Washington St, about 2 blocks west of the Chapter House.  (Just east of the New Pioneer Co-op).  We will be talking about our calendar for the upcoming year, taking hostess volunteers and we are going to be making ceramic items to use in the raffle at the Centennial celebration.  We'll meet there at 1pm on Sunday, August 14, 2011.  So bring your creative juices and a little cash to paint your donation/selection--we'll have some options and some ideas for those who need suggestions, and we will have fun snacks!  Can't wait to see you all there--plan to spend about 1-1/2 to 2 hours and dress casually in case you spill paint.  This is going to be fun!

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Welcome to the Iowa City Alumni Chapter of Alpha Chi Omega Blog!

Welcome to the Epsilon Theta Epsilon Chapter of Alpha Chi Omega!  As we boldly step into the second 100 years of our collegiate chapter, I want to welcome all of you to join us as we support each other and the fraternity.

If you are reading this, you are probably interested in what is going on with our local alumni chapter.  That is great!  We want you to be interested and get involved!  The first thing you can do is sign up to be a follower of this blog.  It will be the easiest way for you to hear what is going on as soon as we know that it is going on!

The second thing I want to ask you to do is commit to coming to one alumni event this year.  We are planning some great things and we want you to know all about it.  Keep in touch with us by email (you can email me, Brenda Griebahn, president of the chapter, at brenda@writeitdown.org), or phone (319-621-6605) or text me at the same number.

Thank you for your loyalty!