Chi Omega Yours Forever
Like most new students, Erin Hix ’00 first came to Marietta College as a shy, young adult.
“I’m an introverted person naturally, so my mom told me that I needed to join a sorority or else I wouldn’t have any friends — she didn’t mean that in a mean way, but she knew I wouldn’t go out of my way to make friends and she didn’t want me to be lonely at college,” Hix says.
At that time, Rho Chis — representatives of each Greek house — lived in freshman housing during rush, so when the first Rho Chi came into her dorm, Hix followed her mother’s advice.
“I walked right up to her and said, ‘Hi, I’m Erin. I want to be a part of this.’”
As fate would have it, that Rho Chi happened to be a Chi Omega, the oldest women’s fraternity at Marietta College. During rush, Hix felt like her bold introduction put an asterisk beside her name because everyone in the fraternity made her feel welcome and wanted. Her decision was made.
Since 1923, the Chi Gamma chapter of Chi Omega has welcomed countless young women to join the sisterhood, and each has taken to heart the fraternity’s core values of scholarship, service, friendship, campus involvement and personal development. During Homecoming, Hix and more than 100 of her sisters returned to celebrate the centennial reunion of the Chi Gamma chapter of Chi Omega.
Anna Bock Mullins ’04 was part of a committee that organized a weekend of sisterhood and fun for the returning members that included a reunion at the house, as well as a formal brunch at the historic Lafayette Hotel.
“There is really no way that we can truly do justice to the history of our organization because so much has happened in 100 years,” Mullins says. “This organization — the friendships it has created and the lessons it has taught us — has given so much to all of us.”
Written by Gi Smith
Photos by Phil Mason, Tom Perry and Nathan Reich
Mother and daughter Chi Os, Lee Berg Reed ’64 and Katie Gardner Kelly ’88, flipped through the pages of a scrapbook made during Reed’s time as a student.
“This was my freshman year,” Berg says to her daughter. “Look how young! It seems like yesterday. I remember how much fun we had in this house. I never got more than four hours of sleep a night — there was always something going on.”
Kelly appreciates the fact that she and her mother both are a part of the Chi Omega sisterhood and what the fraternity brought to each of their lives.
“I love hearing stories from mom’s time here,” Kelly says. “I’m on House Corps, so I stay in touch with the physical aspects of the house. I also served as an advisor for a few years after I graduated. I wanted to make sure current sisters had a good experience. It was important for me to stay connected.”
Lynne Downey Goldsmith ’73 waited until her second semester to go through rush. It was January 1970, and the national turmoil was making its way to Marietta College’s campus. Her pledge class included a young African American woman, Cathy Bradley ’72, who was the first Black woman to join Marietta's Chi Omega chapter. The first Black woman to pledge a Greek chapter at Marietta was Maewanda Michael ’66, who was a member of the Alpha Sigma Tau sorority. (This is a corrected version for the online version. Incorrect information appeared in the print edition of Marietta Magazine).
“We were put on probation and national pulled our charter,” Goldsmith says. “Cathy was so brave. There was a lot of pressure on her, and for us — and we all believed she had every right to be right there with us — that moment jelled us together. We were unified in our beliefs and that moment is a big part of why I love Chi Gamma.”
Though Bradley deactivated as a pledge, the Chi Gamma leadership pushed forward after national restored the charter and worked to implement changes at the highest level.
Jodi Leipold ’98 says the chapter’s welcoming personality is what led her to join. She spent Homecoming catching up with her sisters — those she knew as a student and those she met for the first time that weekend.
“To be honest, I didn’t think of myself as a sorority person, so I didn’t pledge until my sophomore year,” Leipold says. “I’m a very inclusive person, and what I found out is that Chi Omega is also very inclusive. Everybody is welcome and everybody is welcoming.”
Elizabeth “EJ” Lehman Grounds ’08 looked over the banquet hall in the Lafayette Hotel with one of the newest alumnae, Eleanor Smith ’23, as they discussed the many poignant items in the room that represented their fraternity — from the white carnations and crimson tablecloths to the candle holders that bore designs that looked like pomegranates and the hidden skulls and crossbones.
“I wanted the room to feel special because, hey, they’re my sisters,” Grounds says. “Our time as students was very special, but it has also been incredible to share our lives beyond that — our jobs, our families, our philanthropies.”
Chi Omega’s national philanthropy is the Make a Wish Foundation.
“That’s so important for us to support,” Grounds says. “I know two sisters, including myself, who have Wish kids.”
During the weekend, Grounds met up with her “Little,” Diana Hackenburg ’09, and Diana’s actual sister, Elizabeth Hackenburg Pocock ’12, who is also a Chi O.
“I had such an amazing experience being in Chi Omega at Marietta College and I am glad to be able to reconnect with all of my sisters that I love and miss so dearly,” Diana Hackenburg says.
Pocock says she didn’t want to be in a sorority at first, but her sister’s fraternity encouraged her to participate.
“At first, they were inviting me to events and my sister kept calling me and saying, ‘Oh, you should go to this party or talk to this person,’ and I ended up really liking everyone. I’ve even found sisters who I didn’t graduate with or who weren’t Chi Gamma and connected with them because they live close to me,” Pocock says.
Grounds says there’s an instant friendship and admiration when she meets another Chi Omega, regardless of what chapter they’re from.
“They say sisterhood is for a lifetime, and it’s been true for me,” Grounds says.
Jaime McDaniel Quigley ’01 hadn’t seen Erin Hix ’00 for several years, but all it took was a text message to commit to coming back for the 100th celebration.
“We have that kind of connection that it doesn’t matter how long it’s been since we’ve seen each other or talked, we’ll always be sisters,” Quigley says. “It’s comforting knowing that you have this common thread with so many people; and being able to come back to campus to celebrate that commonality of sisterhood is really special.”
In addition to the friendships made, Hix says the life skills that being a part of the fraternity taught her have directly impacted her professional life.
“One of the things that I saw after graduating was how rush prepared me for the future,” Hix says. “As a ‘rushee’ I had to sell people on myself, very similar to an interview. And as an active member during rush, I had to sell these girls (on) coming to our house on why we were the right fit, so it really gave me a lot of interview skills that I didn’t realize at the time, but in retrospect, it’s all because of my Chi O experiences.”
For Cindy Buck Wilson ’70, staying in touch with her sisters has always remained a priority. After the campus celebration, she and a dozen sisters from her pledge class planned to spend a week together in Texas.
“We’ve planned these trips for years,” Wilson says. “New York City, Pennsylvania, Savannah, Charleston, Jacksonville Beach, Rhode Island — a lot of different places over the years. We’ve stayed really close. We had a wonderful pledge class here from ’66 to ’70.”
She pledged her sophomore year.
“Of course, all the sororities and fraternities had nice, friendly people, but something about Chi Omega made me feel comfortable — like I wanted to be a part of it,” Wilson says. “You never know, when you’re that young, just how much certain people will be a part of your life. We just love each other.”
Chelsey Scott Walls ’13 attributes much of her success in College to being a part of the Chi Omega fraternity.
“As a first-generation college student, I was struggling my first year to adjust; but the women of Chi Omega were super genuine and welcoming and made me feel like I had a home at Marietta College,” Walls says. “I honestly don’t know if I would have made it all four years without Chi Omega. It feels great to be able to reunite with all my best friends and share with them how thankful I am to have them in my life. I learned so many life and leadership skills that I took into my career. I feel so much gratitude.”
Raising her glass of wine, Carole Wylie Hancock ’75 gathered generations of sisters around her to share a heartfelt message.
“We’re all here from many different places around the country and the world, but we all share one thing in common: (Marietta College) and the Chi Gamma Chapter of Chi Omega. Here’s to 100 years of sisterhood and may the next 100 years be filled with good friends, good times, good health, and cheers.”
From a mixer in the Dyson Baudo Recreation Center to an evening at the Chi O House to look through scrapbooks and composites, the Chi Gamma alumnae and actives created new memories while reconnecting with each other.