Courtney Krail: Director of New Member Education

When I first joined Alpha Phi there were two girls that made my experience exciting and comfortable. At the time, I barely knew who they were, but I looked up to them in so many ways because they were so inviting and taught us everything we needed to know about our sorority. They were our Pledge Moms. When I sat there and watched them, I knew I wanted to take on that position and I couldn’t wait to give a group of girls the same experience they gave me. Earlier this year, elections took place and I knew Director of New Member Education would be the perfect position for me. In becoming a “Pledge Mom” along with my good friend, Sarah Davidson, I knew there would be a crazy amount of preparation and teaching in store, but I have been having so much fun with all the activities and sisterhood events we are planning for the incoming new members. As education majors, Sarah and I love teaching and getting people excited to learn. Pledge Moms are given the responsibility to bring in the new members and teach them what Alpha Phi is all about. We cannot wait to welcome these girls with open arms and start getting to know each one of them as soon as we can. We look forward to teaching this spring’s new pledge class all of the great things Alpha Phi stands for and what being a part of this sorority truly means. Recruitment is a crazy and exciting time, and we are so excited for all the fun and commotion around the corner. We love Alpha Phi so much and we cannot wait to get the new members excited about the amazing sorority they have joined!

Pledge Moms Sarah and Courtney 

Scholarship: Bianka Bubic

     In the past year, I was appointed by my sisters to be the Scholarship Chair for Alpha Phi. I was able to stress the importance of scholarship within the daily lives of my sisters as well as to emphasize the positive side of this pillar with chocolate treats and small rewards during our weekly chapter meetings. Scholarship and academics have always been something that I have held close to my heart since it relates both to my future and to my sorority’s values. Internationally, Alpha Phi is recognized by its three essential pillars and ideals: service, sisterhood, and scholarship. Over the past year, I have been able to transform the image of scholarship to my sisters and positively help our girls improve our chapter’s academic rank amongst the fellow Greek chapters on campus.

     Recently in December of 2013, I was honored by LMU Greek Life by being initiated into the Order of Omega Greek Honors Society on campus. I was recognized amongst other Greek sororities and fraternities for my academic standing and my dedication to both leadership and service within my time at Loyola Marymount. I am very excited to join an elite group of young men and women who are passionate and driven leaders within their respective Greek communities. I am also very proud to represent Alpha Phi within the Order of Omega Society as I begin my membership in the upcoming semester. In the next year, I hope that more of my sisters will join me in this amazing opportunity to promote interfraternalism and excellence in the Greek Life community on campus.

     Scholarship is an important value that all Alpha Phi members cherish and strive to maintain during their years within the collegiate atmosphere. I hope that our chapter will continue its amazing growth as the girls reach their own academic successes each semester. As the late Nelson Mandela stated so eloquently, “Education is the most powerful weapon for changing the world.” And I know, for a fact, that my sisters all have that power to make a dramatic difference. 

Katie DiTomaso: Sister Abroad

A year ago I would have never pictured my life the way it is now. I remember it was Thanksgiving of 2012 and I was on my way to my family’s huge, Italian Thanksgiving get-together like we do every year. That was the first time I brought up the idea of studying abroad to my parents. Little did I know the adventure that was ahead of me.  

I applied and, in April 2013, I found out that I gotten into the Gonzaga-in-Florence study abroad program for the Fall 2013 semester. There are only few instances in my life where I can remember being this excited. This is something I had hoped for and dreamed of for so long. On September 9, 2013, I embarked on what I can say with absolute fact is the journey of a lifetime.  

We began with an opening tour through Paris, Strasbourg, and Garmisch all the way to Florence, Italy, where I have lived and studied for the past 3 months. I still remember the moment when the reality of studying abroad really hit me. It was the first time I saw the Eifel Tower. I remember I was eating a Nutella crepe surrounded by some of my best friends in complete and total awe of my surroundings. The months that followed were full of these “is this real life” kind of moments.  

In Florence, I am less than 5 minutes walking distance to some of the most historical and incredible pieces of art and history in the world, like the Statue of David and the Duomo. Italy is amazing not only because it holds about 60% of the world’s most famous pieces of artwork, but also because its central to most places in Europe.  

Every weekend I have the ability to travel somewhere new. So far I have visited over 50 cities and 10 different countries! Some of my favorite experiences to date have been Oktoberfest in Germany, boating around the Amalfi Coast, experiencing the nightlife in Spain, paragliding in the Swiss Alps, getting a blessing by the Pope in Rome, and walking through the Christmas markets in London. It’s so easy to forget that I’m actually abroad to study.  My biggest stress of the semester was whether to visit Barcelona, Ireland, or London over Thanksgiving break.  

Still, I feel like I’ve learned more in just these three months abroad than ever before. I’ve learned that you’re stronger than you think. I’ve learned how much I appreciate my family, friends, and Phis. I’ve learned that you can’t wear neon or American flag T-shirts in a crowd full of Italians. I’ve learned that late night gelato is always a good idea. I’ve learned that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side, but instead where you water it. And above all, I’ve learned that your 20s are your selfish years. It’s a decade to immerse yourself in every single thing possible. So as Mark Twain so beautifully put it, “Throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, and catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. And don’t be sorry.”

Capture A-Phi: Mackenzie Menotti

Capture A-Phi, our capture the flag tournament, was a great finale to our chapter's first Heartthrob Week! It was out 4th year holding Capture A-Phi and it was a success! We earned over $1,500 to support our charity, the Alpha Phi Foundation!

We had over 20 teams of 6 players of more participate in the capture the flag tournament. Since this event was the last competition of Heartthrob Week, we had a bracket specifically for the teams competing in the week long competition that was separate from the normal bracket.

In the end, the mens LAX team took home the gold for the Heartthrob Week bracket and a mixed inter fraternal team of lambda chis, sig eps, and sigma chis won for the other bracket! We loved watching everyone place and get into the games! We hope that all of those that participated had fun because we definitely did!

Mackenzie Menotti: Director of Capture A-Phi 

The Inter Fraternal Winners! 

Alumna of the Month: Jordan Younger

Our Alumna of the Month for August is Jordan Younger! Jordan just graduated from LMU this past spring and is currently attending The New School in Manhattan and pursuing her MFA in Creative Writing. While at LMU she held the position of Director of Fraternity Education (Pledge Mom) and Director of Health and Fitness.

When asked how has her experience in Alpha Phi influenced other aspects of her life Jordan tells us, "Experiencing recruitment four years in a row greatly prepared me to interact with just about anyone. It taught me to hold a conversation and find a point of connection with whoever I am talking to, and that has served me well in the professional world."

Jordan also tells us, "Alpha Phi was such a positive experience for me. The girls I met through Alpha Phi changed my life forever, and I will look back on all of our memories fondly. The girls two years below me will always be dear to my heart, as I was their pledge mom and I have loved watching them grow into beautiful, smart, amazing young women."

Jordan is also an avid blogger on her food blog, The Blonde Vegan. No doubt her experience as Director of Health and Fitness while in Alpha Phi laid the groundwork for this new venture :)

Sisters Abroad: Cristina Ventoza

• One of our sisters, Cristina Ventoza, spent the summer studying and traveling abroad. Read all about her experience here!
• So while most people spent the end of spring semester looking for a summer job, I was looking for a place to spend all my saved up cash. I had spent some time researching different programs to do over the summer, ended up picking a program that was four weeks long in Barcelona. I really did not care about what classes I was going to have to take, but knew I wanted to expand and put to use my spanish skills. I had to take an international business class and a spanish 2 course. I did not know very many people on my trip but that turned out to not be a problem There was 17 of us on our trip all with different expectations and concerns, but in the end I think we would all agree that it was the best four weeks of our lives. We were split into groups of mainly 2 and stayed with host families. I lucked out and would say I got one of the greatest families there was. I had a host mother and two host sisters, ages 19 and 9. They were so nice and attended to anything we needed. The mother would make us breakfast and dinner. Dinner was always a family style that would usually start late, around 9:15 pm and last hours with us talking and comparing cultures. We had classes about four times a week. One weekend we spent doing day trips to Sitges, and Girona, and another weekend we spent doing business visits in Madrid. The worst part about being abroad was remembering that we were still taking classes. It was so easy to get distracted by all that there was to do, but we always found ways to fit some time in for school. Most days I had a four hour break between classes, where I would grab something quick to eat and then head to the beach. The beach was always crowded with people when the weather was nice. It was always a nice place to nap or a good place to attempt to do homework. A couple of my favorite places are Park Güell, that was built by Antoni Guadi and Montjüic, which was a fountain that at night would change colors depending on the music playing. By the time the month was up, we could all hold our own conversing with a Spanish native, we had the metro system completely down, and could tell you where to get the best gelato. I never wanted to leave and can say that I am always going to be trying to find ways to get back there, not only to see my amazing host family, but to visit all the historic parks and buildings.

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Sister Spotlight: International Sister Beatrice Verhoeven

Today's guest blog post is brought to you by one of our international sisters, Beatrice Verhoeven!

“Being from Germany, I had no idea what a sorority was. All I knew was that Elle Woods was a member of one in the movie “Legally Blonde.” Moving to the United States by myself after having lived in Germany for 18 years proved to be a drastic change for me, and I didn’t really know how to handle it. I was extremely homesick, and I was ready to transfer back to Europe. That’s when my best friend, Hannah Comstock, urged me to rush. And at the first Alpha Phi Open house, I met two of my best friends and life-long friends, Elise Fornaca and Jenna Reynolds. These two girls would be my big and pseudo-big in the years to come.

Then I rushed, and I soon found myself in the comfort of Alpha Phi. I knew that I could be myself around all the girls in this chapter, and I didn’t have to pretend like everything was okay when it actually wasn’t. My big would take me out to lunches and keep my mind off the fact that I was 5,000 miles away from home. Attending chapter meetings and going to exchanges made me forget why I was sad in the first place. And every single girl in Alpha Phi, whether it was a senior or a girl in my pledge class, helped me through this rough time.

Now, graduation is almost upon us and I find myself sad to be leaving not only LMU, where I have made great friends and memories, but I realize that I’m sadder to leave the girls of Alpha Phi. Dispersing all over the country, we won’t have Monday’s chapter to look forward to or formals to wear fancy dresses to. But Alpha Phi has been so much more to me than just something to occupy my time with. Alpha Phi gave me girls to look up to, and girls that I wanted to be friends with no matter what--I’ve made friends that I will keep for a lifetime. Some of my best friends are in this chapter, and I truly believe that Alpha Phi has brought us together. I know that leaving LMU will not change the relationships I’ve built, and my heart will always lie with Alpha Phi."