These are the words of Edna Wolf Park, a charter member of Beta Chapter, Kappa Kappa Sigma Sorority for Beta’s “Fifty Active Years” on Tuesday, March 20, 1979, in Frontier High School, Chalmers, Indiana.
“In January 1920 several girls began thinking of forming a club and in a short time Sorsores Club was organized. Carolyn Chamberlain had a friend that was an inspector of Tri kappa. She was going to be in this part of the state and could stop here at Chalmers for a visit with Carolyn. That evening our club met at the home of Irene Shell. This lady seemed to like our group and asked if we would be interested in a sorority. Well, that was something for our group in a sorority and we really had not thought about that. She said she would see about becoming Tri Kappa but she thought our town was too small. It seemed she would never let us know and, of course, the town was too small.”
“Well, the girls did not give up and started thinking about a sorority.”
“One Sunday afternoon four girls with an Indianapolis paper looking over the society pages for something about we hardly know what. We found a few sororities, so we thought Kappa Kappa Sigma was the nicest sounding name. Well, why not write and see what they would say; could not be worse than the Tri Kappa deal.”
“Ann wrote a letter and we soon had an answer. They were a group of working girls who met on Sunday afternoon. They had not thought of expanding, but could we come to Indianapolis and talk. They only had Saturday afternoons and Sundays from work; so, we asked them if they could come to Lafayette, and we would meet them there. They came to Lafayette, and we met in a room at Lahr Hotel. We met several times. Finally on January 15, 1021, three girls came to Chalmers. We met the train and took them to my home for a six o’clock dinner, after which we talked and made plans.”
“The next day they left on the noon train, leaving us as members of Beta Chapter of Kappa Kappa Sigma Sorority.”
“Ann, a Delta Zeta girl, know what we had to have before we could initiate others. We chose our officers: Ann Younger McPhail, President, Carolyn Chamberlian, Vice President, Perle Younger Little, Secretary, Jeanette Chamberlain Shigley, Treasurer, Sadie Shigley Mahin, Esther Burns, Alice Flora, Mary Wolf, Edna Wolf Park, Irene Shell, and Hazel Carr were the other members.”
“The two chapters continued meeting and talking and deciding on the material.”
“Ann and I (helping some) using a Bible, wrote up an initiation one afternoon. Beta selected the rose and chose the colors.”
“Alpha got in touch with a jeweler and before long we had pins. They asked Beta to buy some so five or six girls had the jewel pins and others the plain pin.”
“Alpha was very good to Beta and likewise Beta to Alpha as we continue to meet and write other material that we needed.”
“Later on one chapter was installed and said they should be second place Beta because their town was larger than Chalmers. Alpha said Chalmers girls are in second place, Beta, and are going to stay there.”
“As It Should Be”