Zeta House on the Prairie
- ztatlc.alisoncolangelo
- Aug 26, 2017
- 5 min read
Sigma Chapter
Baker University, Kansas
For the past two weeks my Zeta travels have brought me to Baldwin City, Kansas, to get to know the incredible ladies of Sigma Chapter!
I was greeted at the airport by sisters, Hannah, Sam and Rihanna. After I arrived at the ZTA house and put my luggage in my room, Sam (and her many fun facts) took me on a tour of the small and historic downtown of Baldwin City and Baker's campus.
Baker University was founded in 1858 and was the first university founded in Kansas.
I love history and so I thoroughly enjoyed my tour of campus and the surrounding town. Baker has so many traditions and historical sites. The University is a very old school and so are all of their sorority chapters (Delta Delta Delta, Alpha Chi Omega and Zeta Tau Alpha) they are all single letter chapters and ZTA's chapter is known as Sigma.
Greek organizations name their chapters by Greek alphabetic order; Alpha is the first letter in the Greek alphabet and so every Alpha chapter is the first chapter ever started for each organization.
FRED Fact: Sigma chapter has been on campus since 1912 and in 2012 they celebrated 100 years on Baker's campus. Zeta has a sidewalk on campus to commemorate this achievement with bricks donated from Zetas from every decade; (even a ZTA House Boy from 1936!) Above are some photos from my campus tour and the ZTA sidewalk.
Silent Disco
I got to take part in some of the campus' Wildcat Welcome Weekend activities including a Baker football scrimmage, laser tag on the lawn, and a headphone disco which sounded weird, but was a really cool experience!
At the disco, everyone got a pair of light up headphones and there were 3 different stations that you could choose to listen to each color was a different station. So, if you took off your headphones, there was no music but everyone was dancing to their own blasting song in their headphones.
The chapter is lucky enough to have ZTA Housing! Before this visit, I had never stepped foot in a ZTA house and I was so excited to experience this part of sorority life. Sigma Chapter's house is large and rich with history.
I really enjoyed looking around the house at all of the Zeta artifacts and elements. In the formal living room, there is a really beautiful copy of our crest set in the hardwood and next to it, the piano from the original house, which is over 100 years old that the sisters still play during Preference Night. I also managed to find a scrapbook from 1917 from a past chapter member!
The house is large and has 3 floors, when there is an event taking place, the sisters will "buzz" each other to let every one know to come downstairs; back in the day before cell phones, the sisters of Sigma Chapter all had their own individual "buzz" (kind of like a morse code) that would let them know if they were needed.
I had my own room and bathroom on the first floor of the house and was right across from the weekend kitchen, which was perfect for snacking! I loved hanging out around the house with the girls and got to attend many movie nights in the informal living room with sisters. One of my favorite places in the house was the front porch!
What's unique about Sigma chapter is that the entire chapter lives in their house, so I really got to know them all! They made me feel immediately at home and I won't forget all the memories I made with them!
I arrived just in time for Work Week and recruitment prep! Recruitment Chair, Savannah had a lot of fun things planned throughout the week to keep sisters excited, including a PJ themed day and Yoga at the house!
In Baldwin City, I also got my first (and second, third and fourth) experience at Sonic! Favorite Drink: Blue Coconut Ice Cream Slush with Nerds
The girls also took me to Lawrence, a town near Baker, to try Pizza Shuttle, a college favorite. Really cheap pizza made with cream cheese, which sounds weird, but was actually really good!
Recruitment Ready
It was so fun having recruitment in the house, I loved watching the girls transform it for each round. First was house tours, where potential new members and their families had a chance to explore each sorority house; then philanthropy, sisterhood and preference rounds.
{Round 1: House Tours}
{Round 2: Philanthropy}
{Round 3: Sisterhood}
{Round 4: Preference}
Last visit, I got to try macaroons for the first time and during preference round we served turquoise vanilla bean macarons and they are quickly becoming my new favorite dessert!
🌕🌖🌗🌘8.21.17🌑🌒🌓🌔
Right in the middle of recruitment, we got a break to check out the Solar Eclipse. I had a pretty good view in Kansas!
Crownchella
Bid Day at Baker
Sending Good Vibes to PC '17
The chapter threw such a fun Bid Day! The theme was Crownchella/California and everyone got tye-dye tanks and flower crowns for the occasion! Chapter members excitedly made their way to the lawn on campus to meet their new sisters.
28 new members {literally} ran home to ZTA!
When we got back to the house there was a DJ set up on the front porch and we spent time taking pictures, dancing and eating--perfect night!
Coffee House Happenings:
Baldwin City
After the rush of Recruitment and Bid Day died down I got the chance to explore Baldwin City while the chapter members started their first week of classes and of course, I tried the town's many Coffee shops and cafes; here are my favorites!
Homestead Bakery: ☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️ 5/5
My favorite place in town! I visited for breakfast and lunch; both delicious {especially the chocolate chip scones}! Homestead has a homemade bakery and some antiques for sale inside.
Daylight Expresso Cafe: ☕️☕️☕️ 3/5
Cute little shop with homemade doughnuts and I tried their almond iced latte! Inside the cafe, they had a jeweler and an art gallery.
Jitters Java Ice: ☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️ 5/5
Jitters is housed in a retired train car and I went there multiple times during my visit for breakfast and their Oregon Chai Tea!
Honorable Mention:
Hot Box Cookies: 🍪🍪🍪🍪🍪 5/5
Not a coffee house, but still delicious! Well worth the trip into Lawrence!
Baldwin City Mural
I fell in love with Baldwin City and it's small town charm. I spent every afternoon of my last few days in Kansas walking the red brick roads to downtown to explores shops, antique stores and the food. On Fridays, in town, they play country music throughout the streets.
My favorite place in town was the Tom Swan Garden right by the fountain. The garden had a take it/leave it library and small tables and benches throughout; it was so quaint and there really isn't a better word for it!
The president of Sigma Chapter, Miranda and I spent one afternoon at a coffee shop and Cranberry Market, a little shop where I got some postcards for family and friends and some other cute Kansas finds! I plan on keeping all my polaroids and souvenirs from the year in my new journal.
Next stop, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
to visit Gamma Omicron Chapter!
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