One of the Reasons I Love Cincinnati

The organization that immediately came to my mind when receiving this prompt, was an organization that no one else in our class probably knows about.

In 1987, two years after my parents got married and moved away, my (maternal) Grandmother who had been battling Colon Cancer for 4 years had lost and only had a few months to live.  In order to be closer to my Grandma in Louisville, my parents moved from New York City to Cincinnati. Since neither of my parents had jobs when they got here they were at a loss. Then my mom found Fernside.  Fernside was a brand new nonprofit in Cincinnati; it was a center for grieving children.  Not only did Fernside have a part time job for my mom, but also ended up being her own grieving center. Twenty four years later, my mom is the executive director of Fernside which has grown into a grieving center for children, parents, siblings, grandparents, friends, anyone.

Fernside is an organization that offers their services including private counseling, groups, camps, and a million other resources for free to anyone and everyone in a time when people rarely think anyone can help them.  The seven women that work for my mom and the hundreds of volunteers they have each other amaze me with their courage and strength in facing some of life’s hardest questions.

Fernside does an excellent job of displaying their values, and holding onto the original mission of the organization. And I am very thankful for growing up watching Fernside become what it is today.

https://www.fernside.org/about/

I have two younger sisters, twins in fact, who are seniors in high school this year.  Therefore they believe that everything is about them right now, and they are the two coolest people alive on the face of the Earth.  In short, they are rather annoying, yet I love them.  When I think about what I value the most in my life, it’s the relationships I have with people.   And what exactly do those relationships mean to me? That’s easy. Everything.   Who I am today, every little part of my personality was formed by the people in my life, whether it be my family or my friends or a random friend from summer camp. And while I won't go into depth about these two relationships, two of the most defining relationships in my life are the one I have with myself, and the relationship I have with God. These are, and always will be important to me, but there are few other relationships I want to talk about. The relationships in my life have made me the person I am, and continue to form the person I am constantly evolving to be.

 

I AM my father’s daughter. From the horrible fall allergies to my faith to my sometime stubborn attitude I am just like my dad. My dad is my best friend. My mom is much more like my sisters (including the fact that they are all twins), but one important trait I picked up from my mom is my love and football AND Jim Tressel (don’t worry about it).  Like I said my sister’s are twins, and younger; being the oldest sibling has definitely defined me!  Not only did it allow me to boss them around when I wanted to, but also it made me super protective of them.  My junior and senior years of high school my dad was living out of town most of time for work and my mom worked a ton, so I played parent for 2 years: driving them around, making them dinner, keeping everyone’s schedule.  Having this relationship with my sisters has definitely defined a big part of our relationship and my personality.  As far as extended family goes, I am very lucky to be close with members of both sides of my family.  And being the oldest cousin on both sides of my family, being a constant role model or guinea pig (depending on the situation) has also defined my relationships.  My relationships with my family members provide me with the constant of my life.  No matter what, I know they will be there to help me, support me, save me, and cheer me on!  I value my family more than anything, and that is TRULY amazing to me and that’s why my relationship with my family is one of my core values.

Now, as much as I LOVE blogging, I could never blog about the amazing friends I have had throughout my life.  I could write a novel about my friends, but I will try to point out some exceptional friend memories that show why they are so important to me.

Alice, Kara and me at our high school graduation

1.  My two best friends from grade school: Alice and Kara.  We did everything together, and wasted a lot of summers aimlessly riding our bikes around, sitting at the pool, and watching movies. Alice, Kara and I still hang out every time the three of us are home, and to this day they still bring me back to a time when life was simple, and we didn’t have a care in the world.

2.      2. I loved high school, but I did not like the four years I was in high school.  I spent freshman year thinking we were moving to Florida (and I am from Cincinnati), sophomore year was just a dud, and junior and senior year I spent without my real best friend, my dad.  Lots of other things were going on, but at the end of the day I had a lot of amazing friends who got me through some awful experiences.  Some of the people that meant the world to me merely 3 or 4 years ago are no longer in my life.   Some of those relationships did not end the way I wanted them to, but like I said every relationship I have had, has made me exactly who I am at this moment.  And I wouldn’t change that for the world. On the other hand, some of those friends I am still very close with today.  Actually, one of those friends is in our Greek Leadership Class, so thanks Ashley!

      3. Some of the most important relationships in my life have been with my guy friends.  Without Chris, Bucky, or Craig (and a few other names I won’t call out) I think I would be a very different person.  Having grown up with all girls, attending an all-girls high school, and now being in a sorority I am ALWAYS around women. The guys that I have become good friends with over the different periods of my life have mad a huge impact on me and I am eternally grateful for them.

      4.  The friends I have at Ohio State (both Greek and non-Greek) have created a second home for me.  My friends at Ohio State are the reason I love being in Columbus, they are the reason there are no bad days at Ohio State! And I can’t imagine all the more memories I’ll make with the friends I have already met or the friends I have yet to make at OSU!

5.    

My Pledge Class on Bid Day 2010

      5.  And my DZ sisters…. Well we are sisters. 

Long story, short: my friends are awesome. And they mean the world to me! They show me the kind of person I want to be and keep me in line. I would do ANYTHING for any of my friends, and I know my best friends would always do the same for me. That is why my relationships with my friends are part of my core values.

  

Now, if you know me AT ALL, you are sitting there reading this being like ‘whoa! How could you forget the most important person in your life?!’.  Well don’t worry, I just believe in saving the best for last.

Scott and me, at his wedding this past summer

The most important, or at least the most defining, relationship I have, is the one I have with my cousin Scott.  He is not only my 1^st cousin once removed (that makes him my mom’s little cousin) he is my best friend in the whole world.  Even though he is a 35-year-old lawyer living in Chicago with his new wife, and I am a 19-year-old college student in Columbus, we are inseparable and for the past 7 years have been e-mailing each other every day. We talk about everything and anything and nothing.  Without Scott I truly have no clue who I would be, he is my role model. Scott is the perfect example of why the relationships of my life are my core value!

Every morning I wake up, and I begin my day by calling my parents.  I walk around campus either running into countless of my friends everywhere or on the phone with my friends or family from home. No matter what else is going on in the world, these interactions and relationships keep me grounded, and make me happy.

“The quality of your life is the quality of your relationships.”
Anthony Robbins

Where it all starts

Tonight I was visiting one of my good friends in a fraternity at Ohio State, as we sat there exchanging stories of the latest happenings in our organizations he told me a story of one of his brothers and himself getting into a fight. For my sake we will call my friend, Chris and his fraternity brother, Eric. The fight was purely verbal, and the circumstances of alcohol and girls being involved almost provoked a fight alone. Chris, knowing nothing was going to come of the fight, told Eric they would talk about this the next morning and that he was done.  As Chris turned to walk away, Eric said “and that’s why I don’t respect you”.  Now Chris was fired up.

As Chris sat there last night telling me this story, he said something that has stuck with me, “There is a respect that comes with being a brother, no matter what”.  He went on to vent to me about how the brotherhood stumps any fight, issue, or disagreement the boys can be having: at the end of the day they are brothers. Given boys are much less dramatic than girls, I think sisterhood is something a lot of sororities have lost sight of, including mine.

I joined a sorority to a part of something greater than just myself, or just any single friendship.  It’s about us collectively coming together and believing in the same mission, but more importantly believing in each other.  Instead girls gossip about there sisters, judge their sisters, hurt them their sisters by being selfish.  We’ve lost sight of the idea that at the end of the day, no mater what happens, we will be sisters because we share something greater than ourselves. It was impressive to see a senior in college still have so much faith in his organization and so much, well respect, for his brothers.  I’ll admit, I was shocked to hear all it coming out of his mouth, but I would never doubt what he said for one second.

With all of that being said I think respect is where it starts. Yes, I know that’s not a new concept, but yet it’s still a huge problem.  Not only do members of Greek organizations not respect their ritual, but they don’t respect each other.  So before we get another chance to change the world, or pay it forward, or really anything else we all need to stop. Wait a minute. And THINK about if we respect ourselves, our ritual, and our sisters or brothers. Do you?

If yes, GREAT! Go change the world.

If no, why not?

Where I am.

In September of 2009 I started my journey as a student at The Ohio State University.  Still exhausted from being over involved in high school, I refused to get involved at Ohio State.  I thought it would be a good idea to have nothing to do, so I had time to meet new people and adjust to the college life. By the second week of classes I was dying of boredom.

With that being said, needing involvement was the main reason I decided to go through Formal Recruitment.  My other reason was the legacy I held, my mother and two of her sisters were in a sorority. However, boredom and obligation to carry on a legacy were just the reasons I agreed to go through rush, not the reason I am in a sorority today.  After two of the worst weekends of my life, I found myself a sister of Delta Zeta. 

I went through the next eight weeks as a new member; learning about the traditions, values, and expectations of Delta Zeta.  I really don’t remember much about those weeks except the overwhelming sense of just simply taking in the idea of being Greek at Ohio State. I didn’t realize the relationships forming or opportunities I was be given would change the course of my life.

At first I knew Delta Zeta was the right place for me because of the people, the friendships, the sisterhood I had found.  The reason is still with me; however now I understand and appreciate our values, what our founders intended on creating.  I believe in our mission, and have faith in each member of our sisterhood: past, present, and future.  I never thought being in a sorority would change my life, but it has completely changed me.

I am still from Cincinnati, I still have a mom, a dad, 2 biological sisters, and a dog. I still love Skyline Chili, Graeter’s ice cream, the Buckeyes, and the color pink.  However, now I want to go into Higher Education and Student Affairs, and work with ‘new members’ for the rest of my life. Now, as a sophomore I sit on the executive board of my organization, and I joined Student-Alumni Council.  Now, I love spending time developing my leadership skills, and knowledge about how I can better the organizations I am a part of. 

After reading this Blogabus I know I am in the right place, once again.  I am excited for the opportunity to work with other Greeks that have the same goal I do: change for our community. I am interested to see what exactly the lessons will include, and how I will use the tools I learn in class to better my organization.  Things are constantly changing, as are people, and I can’t wait to see what change will come in the next nine weeks.