Sisterhood Retreat 2015!

This past weekend, October 3-4, we had our annual Sisterhood Retreat. It was held in Manhattan Beach, and was a weekend filled with bonding, tacos, and lots of pictures. 

The fun all began on Saturday with the new members. All the new members gathered at 4 p.m. for a night of fun activities. Our President, Andriana Ricchiuti, and our pledge moms, Katy Joy and Natalie Shuck, led us through the night’s events. We answered some questions like if we prefer the night or day and who's your celebrity crush, played catch phrase, ate pizza and ice cream sundaes, and finished off the night with candle pass. The candle pass really helped to bond all the new members as we learned the good, the bad, and the struggles our sisters are facing. It was really special to be able to show our support for one another, all in a comforting environment. We ended the night by having a huge slumber party, staying up late, and talking the night away. 

The next morning, we had an early wake up call of 9 a.m., and the rest of the chapter joined us for more bonding and festivities. One of the most fun parts of the day was a “Phamily” photo shoot. We wore matching outfits and took pictures with our big’s and little’s. After lots of picture taking, we were surprised with a taco stand for lunch. Throughout the remainder of the day, we gathered around and answered questions about our sisters, wrote letters to a sister who inspires us, played games, and told funny stories. 

By the end of the retreat, all of us felt closer as a chapter. The weekend really showed how lucky we are to have one another, and we’re already looking forward to next year’s Sisterhood Retreat!

LMU Lip Sync and Stroll Off 2015!

Every year, LMU Greek Life hosts a Lip Sync and Stroll Off in support of national and local philanthropies. Each sorority and fraternity choreographs a routine, practices throughout the first week of school, and then performs it in Gersten Pavilion in front of hundreds of people. This year’s theme was “Throwback Thursday,” or “TBT.” All of the Greek organizations came together to compete for the championship, which included a donation to their specific philanthropy.

This year, senior Brianne Levis and junior Kathleen Kenny choreographed our routine. We threw it back to when Iggy the Lion was a cub in Africa, and followed his journey to becoming LMU’s mascot! Our Ivy Man, senior Cole Madden, played Kanye West and led Iggy through the whole excursion to becoming the official mascot for LMU.

Despite the late night rehearsals the first week of school, Lip Sync brought our sorority closer together and helped all the new members bond with the upperclassmen. Sophomore Hailey Transue said that it was “hands down the best experience of my life. I honestly made so many new friends through the process and got to see a change throughout all of the girls. So proud to be a Phi!”

A huge congrats to Delta Zeta and Delta Sigma Phi on the win, and we already cannot wait for next year!

(We start at 13:18!)

Our Partnership with CHLA

Two years ago the chapter sought to find a local organization where our members could provide hands-on volunteer hours. After much research, we decided a partnership with the Heart Institute at Children's Hospital Los Angeles was the perfect fit. It complements The Alpha Phi foundation's mission of supporting women's cardiac health.

Our members have the opportunity to support heart patients at CHLA in a variety of ways. They provide treats to parents of patients who must endure days, weeks, months of hospital stays. They volunteer at the Holiday for the Heart program which supports underserved patients and families with Christmas gifts. They make holiday treats for patients, too.

In addition to spending time volunteering at CHLA, the chapter has provided over $60,000 in monetary donations to CHLA over the past 2 years. We hold 2 events each year to support The Alpha Phi Foundation and CHLA. The first is a Dance Marathon held in the Fall. The second is APHIASCO, a live and silent dinner auction, held in the Spring.

We were proud to make the first donation at Max's fundraising page. You may recognize Max from the famous Super Bowl commercial featuring him as Darth Vadar. We were first introduced to Max and his family when we first partnered with CHLA. In an amazing coincidence we discovered that Max's mom is an Alpha Phi too. We knew this partnership was destined to be.

If you would like to make a donation to Max, the link to his fundraising page is listed below:

http://support.chla.org/siteapps/personalpage/ShowPage.aspx?c=9fLHLNPrEhL0H&b=8775411&sid=esKPJ5PJIhIVJ3MHIrH

ELI Retreat

Recently, Alpha Phi sent Sara Montini to the Emerging Leaders Institute (ELI) Retreat on behalf of LMU Alpha Phi. The ELI retreat is a five day intensive opportunity for freshman and sophomore women to better define their voice, identify their leadership skills and abilities, and learn how to make practical changes for their chapters and communities. Emerging leaders who attend the Institutes receive a full scholarship funded by the Alpha Phi Foundation that includes all travel, lodging and meals at the Institute.

As a result of participating in the Alpha Phi Emerging Leaders Institute, girls will:

• ·      Clarify, articulate and apply the Alpha Phi values of leadership, service, sisterhood, loyalty, intellectual development, and character development. Through this process they will learn how to lead with authenticity, integrity, and confidence.
• ·      Practice their leadership skills so they may serve as effective students, leaders, and citizens within their communities. Collegians will recognize leadership as an inherently relational process of working together to create positive change and be able to apply relational leadership to their current role within Alpha Phi.
• ·      Know the history associated with women's leadership. In addition, collegians will be able to articulate the obstacles associated with women's assent to top leadership positions and know strategies for navigating around these obstacles.
• ·      Build a strong community of support for their personal self and learn how to create a team committed to common goals.
• ·      Strengthen effective communication skills so they may create healthy relationships with others.
• ·      Discover and articulate their personal core values and know that living a values grounded life is living a life of integrity.
• ·      Develop a deeper understanding of and appreciation for the Alpha Phi Ritual.

Sara Montini said of the trip, “The emerging leadership institute is in Indianapolis at butler university for alpha phis across the country. It's a week long program where you bond with each other, learn leadership skills, and share information about your own chapter with others. You learn a lot and grow as a person and grow closer to the 50 other girls! I've made a lot of good friends from all over  that I never would've met if it wasn't for this program.”

Philanthopy: APHIASCO!

Our biggest philanthropy event is coming up this Saturday, APHIASCO! In 1996, the Zeta Beta chapter of LMU Alpha Phi organized the first inaugural Aphiasco event, a live and silent auction benefiting the Alpha Phi Foundation, an organization that has supported women’s cardiac health. Inspired by the success of Aphiasco, the majority of Alpha Phi chapters across the country have adopted similar events as integral parts of their philanthropic efforts – our chapter is so proud to have created an event that has been able to support finding a cure for women’s cardiac disease, and The Heart Institute at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. Our Zeta Beta chapter continues to be one of the top contributing Alpha Phi chapters, collectively raising over $500,000 in support of the Alpha Phi Foundation. Aphiasco is an inspiring evening that continues to make a huge difference in cardiac care through CHLA and The Alpha Phi Foundation. Last year, we made over $52,000 through Aphiasco, more than all the sororities on campus combined! We are very proud of our success through this philanthropy.

Here’s the website for our Aphiasco Philanthropy Event:

http://www.lmuaphiasco.com/

Speaking of philanthropies, this year we started a new philanthropy, DANCE MARATHON! LMU Dance Marathon is Alpha Phi’s fall philanthropy supporting the Heart Institute at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. At this dance marathon, participants dance their hearts out for some truly incredible kids! LMU's Dance Marathon includes entertainment from the entire LMU community, including student dance crews, singers and DJ's, as well as special guests from CHLA. Dance Marathon is a nation wide philanthropy event that has collectively raised $62 million dollars for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, and we are honored to have the opportunity to bring such an amazing event to LMU. At the 2014 Dance Marathon, the event raised $8,545 for The Heart Institute at CHLA. We look forward to continuing this incredible event supporting the children at CHLA.

Finding Sisterhood!

Alpha Phi is full of sisterhood opportunities, from trips to the movies, to Aphiasco, to Dance Marathon, to spa days. Wherever there is Alpha Phi's, there will be love and fun times to remember. Brinn Abbate, a Sophomore Theatre and Communications double major with a dance minor, has a few words to say about her amazing time in Alpha Phi so far:

"My favorite part about Alpha Phi is how I am comfortable to be myself around any of the girls in the chapter, whether that's with makeup or without, at school or at home, or in my pajamas! I loved doing Dance Marathon this year because I got to be with all my sisters, jumping around, yelling, and being crazy... And it was totally normal!"

We can't forget one of the most important aspects of Alpha Phi! Bigs and Littles are one of the coolest things about being in a sorority! Mo Haley, a Sophomore Communications Studies Major, loves her big, Haley Brown!

"My big, Haley Brown, is my best friend! Since the first day this year, we've been attached at the hip. I even went home with her over break to meet her parents and all her old high school friends. She's not only my big, she's my best friend, my future bridesmaid, and my sister."

Welcome Madam President, Andriana!

With the new semester coming up, a new change has happened in our Alpha Phi Chapter! We have a new president, Andriana Ricchiuti, who will be our new leader for 2015! Andriana has a few words on her accomplishment and her plan for Alpha Phi:

“I am extremely honored to follow in the footsteps of the many accomplished leaders of Alpha Phi.  With their mentorship and the support of fellow sisters, I know wholeheartedly that we will advance the mission and uphold the values of Alpha Phi.  Together, we can accomplish meaningful and productive work that positively touches our community.

AOE,

Andriana Ricchiuti

Class of 2016”

Andriana, we are so excited to see where you will take Alpha Phi and can’t wait to get back to school to see the sisterhood! Our president of last year, 2014, spoke wonderfully of her term as president and is excited to pass on the responsibility to Andriana:

“Being the Chapter President for 2013-2014 was a tremendous honor. I learned a lot about myself and am thankful for the executive board I had the pleasure of working with. Before I became President, I had no idea how special the Zeta Beta chapter was not only at LMU, but how unique it is internationally. Although it was bittersweet for me to pass on the gavel, I am extremely confident that our next Lady Superior, Andriana Ricchiuti, will do an outstanding job leading our chapter. Overall, I want to say thank you to my Alpha Phi sisters and Chapter Advisors for giving me love and support throughout my presidency. I am overwhelmed with gratitude from this experience and Alpha Phi will always hold a special place in my heart!

Alpha Phi Love & Mine,

Leilani Mahoney

Class of 2015”