Post 10: Willard Sorority

College is a time spent finding yourself and discovering what you want out of life. It is about building new relationships and being willing to walk the extra mile to discover new things about life. College is about finding something that will challenge you like you never thought possible and finding a place where you feel comfortable. I have found that new place where I learn something new everyday. Willard Sorority is my new family and home away from home.

When I first came to Nebraska Wesleyan, I was anti-Greek. I told everyone who’d listen that Greek life wasn’t for me, and that they could stop trying to get me to go through recruitment. After several close friends encouraged me to go through recruitment, I never looked back. Joining Willard has opened me up to so many new opportunities in just a short time. I feel like I have changed for the better since joining Willard sorority.

Willard is named after Francis E. Willard. In 1889 when the sorority first opened, a group of women picked her as their role model because for them she was the model of perfect womanhood. So as Willard’s, we strive for perfect womanhood just as Francis E. Willard did. A Willard strives to do her best at everything she does. A Willard is capable of excepting failed attempts, but willing to give something another try. A Willard is a girl who has a genuine care in her heart. She wishes her other sisters well and is excited to hear about their successes.

The thing I like most about the girls at Willard is that no two are alike. Each girl is different in her own way and no girl is defined by the others. Each girl contributes something different to the sorority and without her it wouldn’t be the same. Being in a sorority is like living with all of your best friends. They are there to share your joys and worries and they are always there to lend a few encouraging words when things get tough.

Being a Willard has allowed me to find some girls that I will hold close to my heart for years to come. Knowing that there is always someone around that will be there for you is the best feeling in the world. In just a short time, the girls at Willard have taught me that not everything is perfect and not everything goes the way we want it to, but in the end things always turn out ok. I have learned not to judge others based on first impressions and that people can change for the better. I have learned that friends are very important and taking the time to get to know them makes me love them even more. I smile and feel proud when I tell others that I am a Willard.

(The picture above is the Willard Sorority Symbol. Willard is the oldest and largest local sorority in the United States)

Post 9 : Omaha's Hunger Problem

A growing problem in Omaha, Ne is the number of homeless and hungry people. During the winter, many homeless shelters become full to capacity and have to turn people away. I think it is our responsibility as privileged citizens to do something about these extreme conditions. The Open Door Mission is one particular organization in Omaha that is trying to break the cycle of poverty.

Poverty is a continuous cycle that causes people to be homeless and go hungry. In my opinion, one of the main causes of homelessness is no education. If people are not educated, they won’t get a good job. And if they don’t have a good job, they won’t be able to provide sufficient food for their families. It is a continuous cycle of problems that can only be broken through education. If we can educate the less fortunate about their living conditions, we could show them that they could have a better life.

Hunger and homelessness are nation-wide problems that need to be addressed. One particular group in Omaha that is working to end hunger on a worldly level is the Christ Community Church. This group packaged about 220,000 meals that will be sent to Mali. So many of the children in Mali are malnourished and many die of hunger within their first year. There is enough food in the world to feed everyone; we just have problems getting it distributed to the areas that need it most. I think our government could keep a better eye on problems like this and spend more money on attacking the hunger problem in our country instead of spending so much money on the war.

During my freshman year in high school, I had the opportunity to go to Chicago on a service trip with my school. One of the service projects that we participated in was a trip to the La Casa soup kitchen. Normally, most volunteers would have gone inside and served the less-fortunate their food, but on this day we waited outside in line with the less-fortunate. It was a different experience, because it really made me think about how everyday they wait out in the sub-degree weather just to receive a hot meal. Waiting in line with them showed solidarity with the poor. After we received our meals, we were able to sit and talk with some of the men and women. They had amazing stories of how they came to be where they are at. Many of them didn’t seem to mind that this was their lifestyle. Others were attempting to turn their lives around. One woman I remember told me that she had just gotten a job and she was trying to make a better life for her kids.

This trip to Chicago really opened my eyes to the fact that poverty, homelessness, and hunger live not only in Chicago but in my own city as well. After I got back from the trip I realized that I had ignored these problems for so long and had no idea that they existed! After this, I started doing more service projects that allowed me to confront these issues head on. I volunteered with habitat for humanity, I became a mentor for less-fortunate child through Big Brothers and Big Sisters of the Midlands, and I helped fix up a community center in one of the Hispanic neighborhoods. Small projects like these are the start of make a change. The change may not be immediate, but overtime the little things will add up to a big change. Maybe someday our society will no longer have to recognize poverty, hunger, or homelessness as major problems.