Momma Deb of Delt has always been a part of Greek Life. It pretty much runs in her blood. "My family could probably be their own IFC," she said after listing where all of her family had been members of.
Obviously Momma Deb was made to be a House Mom. She was always very involved as a student here, even being one of the founding members of Gamma Phi Beta when she was a freshman! Talk about dedication. After graduation, she and her husband (who was an AGR) went on faculty at OSU and gave a lot of their time to the community.
Being a House Mom was something Momma Deb always thought would be fun, and she was able to keep her involvement in the Greek community. Now she stays involved though working on the board of the Greek Neighborhood Association to keep us all safe. They recently installed the 95 street lamps all over our Greek neighborhood for better safety at night! The board is now working on security cameras for additional protection. Momma Deb likes to start things and seem them through. I am imagining her as a student being a major campus climber: always involved in organizations and leading different events (I tried that freshman year but man I got tired really quick)!
Nineteen years ago, Momma Deb became Delt's House Mom. She took a two-year break a while back, making her one brave woman for giving 17 years to fraternity men. She loves being a House Mom so much she doesn't know when she is leaving! The Delts joke with her every year that she has to leave with their graduating class because they are the best... but of course every pledge class thinks they are better than the last, so she is going to keep sticking around. Plus, she already feels like she "lives in a (young) funny farm," so theres no point in going into retirement.
Momma Deb loves it when her men come to her with spontaneous questions and conversations and she gets to spend time with them. She even repairs rips and sews on new buttons to their clothes (y'all are spoiled). She also holds an annual Super Bowl party at her house where she cooks yummy food all by herself! Don't worry, the teams are separated by rooms so no rivalry fights break out.
When she isn't entertaining them, they are definitely entertaining her with their shenanigans. Within her first couple years here, she was woken up to a surprise. During a fire drill in the middle of the night, Momma Deb watched as more ladies than guys filed out of the house! She knew it was going to take some getting used to, but after talking with her son who was a Beta here, she hung up feeling a little more encouraged for the years ahead.
Momma Deb's favorite parts about being Delt's House Mom:
- She loves their journey of them coming in freshman year scared to death, then growing closer to their pledge class and by halfway through the semester they are refusing to go back home.
- Getting visited by old members during Homecoming. This past year, three of her Delts from the first year she was here came to see her with their wives and little kiddos, and there were no words for how great that was.
- Encouraging the guys to make connections and work hard. Life after college will be different, but being ready and having your family inside of your chapter can make a world of a difference.
Whatever Mom Deb is giving herself to, she is doing it with a smile. Towards the end of our interview her cute little pup was barking at the lions being filmed on TV, and we just laughed at let her stand guard over Momma Deb. She really enjoys her position as the House Mom of Delta Tau Delta, and she isn't going anywhere anytime soon, boys, but she will keep telling every pledge class that they are the best to keep them smiling, too.
