Joining Kappa Delta in the middle of a global pandemic is an experience that I will never forget. Due to COVID-19 all of the extremely memorable New Member milestones were greatly altered. From recruitment, to Big/Little reveal, to Initiation, COVID restrictions made it difficult to meet girls. Even with all of the restrictions, I was able to find ways to get super close with my sisters and I am so grateful for all of the friendships Kappa Delta has brought me.
Looking back on recruitment there were a variety of reasons as to why Kappa Delta stood out to me. During First Invite, I was paired with Mackenzie Miller and absolutely loved her. Between our love for PUDM and our coaching experience, Mac and I both have a lot in common, which is why I loved talking to her. The conversation flowed so well that I wrote her name down in big letters on my notebook so I would remember her. When the next round came around, I talked to Abby Kinkle and have never felt so comfortable in my entire life. She was able to ease all of my worries and made me excited about Kappa Delta. After this conversation I knew in my heart that Kappa Delta was #1 on my list. After finding Abby and Mackenzie’s Instagrams, I found out that the two people that made me fall in love with KD were a Big/Little pairing of their own. At that point I knew I wanted to be a part of something like that. When Preference Round came, the nerves were high. During recruitment I had been talking to my sister, who is a Kappa Delta at Western Kentucky University, for the entire week. She asked me who I wanted to talk to and I immediately knew I wanted either Abby or Mackenzie. Getting onto the Zoom call I remember looking through every little box for their names and getting so happy when I saw both of them. I ended up talking to both Abby and Mac that day, which was incredibly special to me. I felt like I had known them forever and we could talk about deeper things.
The day after bid day, I decided to put myself out there and snapchatted probably fifteen girls in the pledge class above me to introduce myself. That same day a friend and I went to the house to take pictures where we met our Bid Day Buddies, and mine just so happened to be Abby. Getting to hug her in person for the first time was crazy and so exciting. We decided to go to Starbucks and then met up with Mackenzie afterward. As soon as she saw me, she gave me the biggest hug and I just kept thinking how much I loved these people. A few days later, a group of us all went to get ice cream and that was my first-time meeting Izzy (Mackenzie’s Big). My first thought of Izzy was that she is the funniest person I have ever met, and I can see how her and Mackenzie make a great Big/Little pair. The whole time I kept thinking to myself how sweet all of them were and I knew spending time with them felt like home.
After getting super close with Abby, Mackenzie, and Izzy I knew I wanted Abby as my Big. When Big/Little selections came around I knew I would be happy with any girl I got as my big but the whole process left me curious. During Big/Little week I had this strong feeling that Abby was going to be my Big, even though both her and Mackenzie tried tricking me. At Big/Little Reveal I was so excited and sure enough my instincts were right. I ran to the center of the room to hug Abby and felt so happy. After the reveal they surprised me, and we all went to Cake Bake. There I was able to meet my GGG-Big Hannah, who had just graduated in the spring. Throughout that whole day I got even closer with my new family and it felt as if I had known them forever.
The new member process was a little different due to the pandemic, which made it a bit difficult to make bonds with my new sisters. However, the little things like going to the house and joining the Bible study group is what really helped me find my friends. My now family and I are super close and spend time together constantly. Whether it’s Bachelor Mondays, drives to cry about boys, study dates, or our ever-famous late night ice cream runs. I couldn’t imagine myself with any other family and I know I can always rely on them to be there when I need them. In the fall I hope to find a Little that replicates the same strong bond that I have with Abby, and that she will love the Power Family as much as I do.
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