Where it all started.......
In 1931, during the Great Depression, there was a need for an organization that could bring women together and expose them to a social, cultural, and educational climate that was not available in those difficult times. Beta Sigma Phi was created out of this need. It did not take long before Beta Sigma Phi members were helping others. Members worked together to raise $2
2 million in war bonds during World War II. The 1950s brought peace and prosperity to the world, and Beta Sigma Phi membership doubled. This era was filled with grand balls, elegant teas, and the growing strength of sisterhood as thousands of women joined Beta Sigma Phi. As the times have changed, so has Beta Sigma Phi. The 1960s and 1970s found our organization less formal, but the ideals were the same. Now in the 21st Century, our over 165,000 members find the more we grow, the more valuable we become to our sisters and to our communities. The Beta Sigma Phi woman will continue to face challenges and cherish opportunities as she moves into the future. Typical chapters enjoy socials that range from informal gatherings to gala affairs that often include friends and family. Fascinating cultural programs offer insight into subjects that range from the arts to gardening to in-home businesses. Membership in our organization provides opportunities to contribute to your community, develop lifelong friendships, and polish leadership skills. Our members raise more than $3 million for local charities and donate over 200,000 volunteer hours in an average year. Each chapter determines its own service projects and participation is always voluntary. Chapters have created their own International Funds that donate millions of dollars to health research groups, hunger projects, and other worthwhile causes. Members and their families can receive assistance through our International Loan, Scholarship, and Disaster Funds. Unlike a college sorority, our organization has members of all ages and educational backgrounds. Our sisterhood constantly redefines itself through the diversity and vitality of its members who share their ideas, talents and enthusiasm. That is why we are known around the world as "The Friendship Organization". (History courtesy of www.betasigmaphi.org.) Beta Sigma Phi, the far-reaching non-academic sorority, has developed a number of traditions since its founding in 1931 in Abilene, Kansas. The sorority, which has more than 200,000 members, boasts chapters in 32 countries and in every state in the United States. The Beta Sigma Phi traditions help ensure that the sorority carries a common culture across societies and generations. The sorority's guiding principles are defined by the translation of its Greek letters, which stand for life, learning and leadership. In order to become a member of the Beta Sigma Phi sorority, you must be invited to join an active chapter. The sorority's chapters run routine rush periods to seek new pledges. The traditional international rush periods are in March and October. Pledges wear pledge pins until they become full members, or sisters, receiving training in the rituals of the sorority during their pledge process. Each new pledge selects an existing member to be her sorority mother, guiding her through the pledge process. Members progress through ranks with experience, journeying from pledge to the degrees of Nu Phi Mu, Ritual of Jewels, Exemplar, Preceptor, Laureate and Master. Beta Sigma Phi members call each other by their given names. They also wear pins, which non-members are not allowed to wear. The Beta Sigma Phi pin, or badge, is emblematic of the sorority's attachment to tradition. Members are required to wear the pin over the heart on dresses and blouses when attending ritual events or members-only functions. When a member sends another a card to express sympathy, congratulations, gratitude or some other recognition, she includes a yellow rose. When a member announces an engagement or marriage, she brings a box of candy to a chapter event or meeting to share with her sorority sisters. Beta Sigma Phi traditionally celebrates certain dates. These include Mother's Day, chapter anniversaries and Beginning Day, which is August 30 and is used to plan for a new sorority year. The most prominent anniversary, though, is Founder's Day, which celebrates the April 28, 1931, founding of the sorority. On Founder's Day the sorority honors members who have reached important milestones, ranging from the Order of the Yellow Rose, which is for members who have been in the sorority for 15 years, to the Diamond Circle, which is limited to those with 60 years of membership. Each chapter also presents a "Woman of the Year" from its membership roll. Beta Sigma Phi promotes chapter interactions. For instance, each chapter has a sister chapter, a tradition designed to foster a relationship and to keep members engaged with the sorority on a scale beyond individual chapters. In that same vein, a Beta Sigma Phi chapter will often host a newly founded chapter nearby for a social event or meeting. Each chapter produces a yearbook for all of its members to celebrate the chapter's activities that year.
