Everything Happens for a Reason

I like to believe everything happens for a reason. Everything that happens in your life, the people you meet, the places you go, lead you to where you belong and are supposed to be. And that is exactly what I believe happened to me.

Freshman year was a big transition for me, just as it is for so many freshman college girls. Change is always hard, and with a Type A personality, it doesn’t make it any easier. Along with becoming a college student, my personal life at home was changing. My family was noticing small changes in my grandmother, Mama Mary, who lived alone 45 minutes away. Mama had already successfully overcome breast cancer, but this was different. She was forgetting to eat, forgetting simple things, and just wasn’t the same. As the months progressed, my grandmother moved into our home and stayed in my room while I was away at school. Although doctors are unable to make an official diagnose, they believed Mama Mary had Alzheimer’s disease. To this day, I still cannot fully understand/believe it. Watching her trying to remember and trying to make sense of what is going on in her head, breaks my heart. Realizing that she would never be the same was the hardest to comprehend.

Freshman year ended and as I became a sophomore, the idea of joining a sorority was put into my head. Me, in a sorority? I grew up playing sports where every weekend my family could either be found on a field or court; I even played a varsity sport my freshman year here. Somehow I decided to go out of my comfort zone and go out for recruitment. And that’s when I met Sigma Kappa.

Through interest sessions and during the second round of recruitment, the philanthropy round, that is when I learned of Sigma Kappa’s philanthropy: Alzheimer’s disease and research. Immediately, I knew that is where I belonged.

Fast forward a year and a half, and I couldn’t be happier. I am where I belong and am supposed to be. Having over 80 sisters who understand and deeply care about something that so greatly affects my family is something I am so grateful for. There are sisters who are going through the same hardships and who are always willing to listen to all your stories. Through visiting nursing homes to helping raise money and awareness for this disease with no cure, I, along with all my sisters, are helping all those who suffer from Alzheimer’s and their caregivers. Although Mama Mary may no longer remember my name or that I am her granddaughter, I find peace in knowing that my efforts will help those who struggle with losing their memories. And one day, no granddaughter will ever have to see her grandmother suffer.​