I knew that getting my degree is important to not only me, but my family as well. I made a promise to my family that I would finish college and secure a great job because they only want what's best for me, and I want to make them proud. I was back and forth on deciding if I wanted to go to college or not, and it took me a while but I finally decided that I wanted to. So I did everything I needed to do to enroll at UAM. I wanted to go somewhere that was a little further away from home, but there's a reason and plan for everything. It just so happened that I ended up at the University of Arkansas at Monticello. So I packed everything up the weekend before I was set to move in. I had been putting into thought of how I was going to get through school and this was my idea of how it would go: There would be no extracurricular activities, I was just going to bury myself in my books and study. I'd heard of Greek Life and I thought that wasn't for me because of how the media portrayed it to be. It just seemed like something I didn't need to be involved in because it wasn't on my list of priorities. But I kept it an open mind about it. I loaded up all of my things, and I headed to the campus for move-in day. Just like any other Freshman, it's awkward when you first move in. You don't know anyone and you're afraid to talk to anybody because they may think you're weird. But thankfully there were activities and events planned during welcome week so it made the transition a little easier. I met someone who was a member of Tri-Sigma. We met and connected. She and I became really good friends and we saw each other almost all of the time. We even had choir together. I noticed she would wear her letters a lot, and I was curious what they stood for. So I began to ask questions about Greek life and what her organization did. She began to explain to me everything that they got to do. I will admit, I was kind of a loner, and being a loner sucks, especially when the friends you had in High School all went their separate ways and you thought that you'd never see them again. The small circle of people I knew were the band kids because most of my life, I was a band member. My Fridays were spent performing at Football games.

So never the less, I decided that I would go through recruitment to get the feel of if it was for me or not. I will admit, I was a little skeptical just because of what I'd heard before. But I didn't let that stop me because I wanted to keep an open mind about it. So I went ahead and attended the week of events. And before I knew it, it was finally bid day. I walked into the office, and behold, THERE WAS A BID WITH MY NAME ON IT!! I was over the moon. I knew that week that Tri-Sigma was where I wanted to be. So I got my bid and I walked into the room where everyone was. Running home into the arms of some of the people who would become your best friends is one of the best feelings ever. And it's crazy to think that these people who were merely strangers would ultimately feel like family just a few hours later because of how welcomed I felt.

I've been told so many times that "You're paying for your friends" or "You're just wasting your time" But what I can tell them from my experience is that it's not like that. Yeah sure, we pay dues every semester, but that's because it goes to our philanthropy which supports play therapy in children's hospitals. I feel good knowing that what I pay helps better the lives of children. No hospital stay should make the child feel any less of child than they are. Play Atrium's supported by Tri-Sigma Foundation gives a place for the child to come and play and let all of the procedures become none of their worries for a little while. It's like Chuck-E-Cheese says, "Where a kid can be a kid." The experience far outweighs the amount I pay each semester.

I know that no matter where life takes me, I'll always have a friend because of my sisters.

I wear my letters on the front because I know they will always have my back.