No Matter the Letters - We're All Greek Together

I’m sure it’s happened to you before. You’re walking across campus, proudly sporting your letters, and across the way you spot a girl in another sorority’s letters. As you make brief, almost-awkward eye contact with her as you cross paths, you can’t help but smile a little. Hey! I’m in a sorority, too! We’re both Greeks! While she may not be your sister, she’s a sister, nonetheless. And that’s something special. While you may not be in the same sorority, you know that she understands the sorority experience, and you can bet that she lives up to her sorority’s values just as you do yours. So doesn’t that make you sisters, all the same?

“PANHELLENIC SISTERS: NO MATTER THE LETTERS, WE’RE ALL GREEK TOGETHER.”

It’s a thing. You’ve seen it on Pinterest. You’ve probably liked and shared it on Facebook. There are plenty of Panhel-Pride images out there that make you proud to be you. And it really is something to be proud of. I mean, think about it: we’re members of fraternal organizations that have banded together to create a beautiful alliance of womanhood and Greek pride. That’s the National Panhellenic Conference, comprised of twenty-six sororities that strive to help women become their best and bond with sisters to make friendships that last a lifetime. It’s an organization that helps sororities to strive and flourish, enhancing the college experience and promoting friendship and sisterhood among collegians. Your school’s Panhel is made up of leadership representatives from all sororities on campus working together to promote the sorority experience for everyone. This Panhel thing certainly is something to be proud of, isn’t it?

No matter the letters, we are all Greek together. We all have aspects that bind us together, and though our traditions may be unique, we are all united by that Panhel Love.

Letters and Greek Pride
Whatever letters you wear proudly on your sweatshirt, you have letters to believe in. These letters mean more to you than meets the eye, more than anyone not duly initiated could even imagine. You’ve learned your letters’ true history and significance throughout your sorority experience. They are sacred. Whether you sport two letters or three, you have something to be proud of, and so do the other sorority women on your campus. When you wear your letters, you represent everything your sorority believes in and everything the sisterhood has meant to you. And you know what? We all have that privilege. Anyone who wears any letters at all knows the feeling of pride you get from walking across campus in your Bid Day shirt, thinking to yourself, “That’s right, I’m a proud member of Kappa Alpha Theta! (or what have you.)” Every sorority woman knows that feeling of an indescribable love for all her sisters, countless memories, and tears of joy. How can one possibly describe these wonderful feelings in mere words? You don’t have to. You have your letters. The letters say it all.

A Rich Heritage
Each sorority has its own unique history, its own founders, and its own story. Some have 11 founders, some have 4, but we can all attribute our memories back to a group of courageous women who founded an organization that would soon grow to be what it is today. Whether you’re a proud member of the Syracuse Triad or the Macon Magnolias, you’ve got heritage. You have thousands of sisters across the globe. You’ve got sisters that have come before you and will come after you. We all share a continuing history. Though our stories may be different, we all have a history that dates back through the generations, often back to when a woman attending college was a rarity. Just as you have your own family history, your sisters across the world and your Panhellenic sisters all have history to cherish.

Traditions and Rituals
Whatever they may be, we all have rituals. Though we don’t talk to them outside of the chapter room, we all have our secrets. These secrets are sacred and cherished. They are the tie that binds all sisters together. Sisters have been diligently conducting these traditions for generations. While the rituals of another sorority may be different from yours (whatever they are), they are traditions, nonetheless. It’s an honor to be a part of something so magical. I don’t know about you, but I sure feel the goosebumps whenever I participate in my chapter’s Ritual. I’m sure other women understand.

Campus Pride/Greek System Pride
Regardless of your letters, you’re still a proud student of your campus. You’re still a member of the Greek system. You’ve all competed together, you’ve all celebrated together, and you’ve all studied together. You’re a lady and a scholar. You’ve got school pride and sorority pride. Might as well show it off!

Character
Although you may still feel bitter about your rival sorority’s win of the Homecoming contests, you can’t deny that those women are still wonderful people on the inside. We were all chosen to become members of our respective organizations because our sisters saw something in us that they believed in. They saw the chapter’s values in us and knew that we would be excellent members of the chapter. Heck, they straight-up liked us as people! We’re all women of character, so toss rivalries aside and remember this.

Other sorority women know the true values of sisterhood. They know what it’s like to scream in delight as you get your beloved little on Big/Little Reveal. They know how it is to be rescued from an awkward bar encounter from your best wingwoman. They know what it’s like to have unconditional love for one another.

Our differences are what make us unique. Like a rose is made up of individual petals, a sorority is made up of individual members. Panhel is a garden, made of individual rosebushes.


And so, whether you’re repping angels and arrows, squirrels and pearls, or a golden lyre, you’re repping something more. You’re a proud woman of Panhel. Now, go out there and show some Panhel pride!

Editor's Note: This post was written by one of our new writers, Lauren. Be sure to leave her comments on her first official post!