GAMMA GAZETTEA quarterly publication by Gamma Chapter of Iota Phi Lambda Sorority, Incorporated

Volume 4, Issue 1 Winter 2011__________________________________________________________________________________________

A Word from the President

Greetings Sorors and Friends of Gamma Chapter,

Gamma has been busy with activities that reflect and support our national programs and projects. Once again we have partnered with the Capital Book Fest in our “Assault on Illiteracy”. Our new relationship with Suitland High School’s Business Department resulted in a wonderful American Education Week celebration. And in addition to raising funds for scholarships and serving our community, we continue to be faithful to the goals set by our National President with regard to membership. In November, we held our RUSH for Spring 2011, and our intake process is in full gear. Our membership committee is working on developing future members into strong, positive contributors to this great organization known as Iota Phi Lambda.

This year Gamma Chapter is excited as we move toward our 80 th year of service to Iota and the greater Washington, DC area. We will continue to work towards increasing our impact on the community by executing the programs of Iota with the sisterly spirit of friendship and love.

It has been said that you should be careful what you plant because it will determine what you reap later. The founders of our great sorority planted honesty and we have reaped truth. They planted goodness, and we have reaped friends. They planted consideration, and we have reaped perspective. As Gamma Chapter enters into our 80th year of service, we are happy to be one of the plants in the Iota Garden.

We hope you enjoy reading about Gamma Chapter’s activities and events.

In Sisterly Service,Adrienne R. BirdineAdrienne R. Birdine

Inside this issue

Capital Bookfest

2

Community Service

3

Membership Highlights

4

Holiday Party 5American Education

Week

6

Women’s Health

7

Black History Month Quiz

7

Iota Member Milestones

8

Looking Ahead

9

CAPITAL BOOKFEST

Picture it! It was a chilly, pre-dawn, October the 2nd, Saturday morning at The Boulevard in Largo, MD. Sleepy-eyed members of Gamma Chapter walked around mostly closed shops, searching desperately for a Starbucks. Why were members out before the sun had fully peaked over the horizon? Members came out to support the Capital Bookfest, an annual event designed to spotlight national and local authors and their literary works by strengthening families through reading. Sorors Kimya Moore, Adrienne Birdine, Angie Homer, Sharna Jones, Denise Carter-McCormick, Kimberly Morgan-Craft and Lynn Gilbert worked the various volunteer booths throughout the day-long event. Amidst stuffing bags, assisting authors and vendors and general set-up, Gamma members were mindful of the support we have for the Sorority’s national “Assault on Illiteracy” Program. The program was developed to help adults and youth eradicate illiteracy. The Capital Bookfest promotes reading initiatives, fledging authors and showcases well-established literary writers.

Sorors came out to volunteer and enjoy the day’s activities, which included appearances by actress Victoria Rowell, Sonia Sanchez and Michelle Singletary. Coincidentally “Gamma green” T-shirts were given by the event coordinators to help volunteers be more visually accessible to exhibitors and patrons. Or maybe they just knew that “Gamma Green” was the best color around.

Sorors Denise Carter-McCormick and Adrienne Birdineholding down the authors’ signing table at the

Capital Bookfest.

Soror Angela Homer holding down the moon bounce at the Capital Bookfest

Sorors Sharna Jones, Adrienne Birdine andAngela Homer at the Capital Bookfest

Winter 2010 Gamma Gazette, Page 2 Volume 4, Issue 1

Community Service

On Saturday, November 6, 2010, members of Gamma Chapter participated in Gamma’s Fall Community Service Project at the Capital Area Food Bank. The Capital Area Food Bank was founded in 1980. They are the largest, nonprofit hunger and nutrition education resource in the Washington Metropolitan area.

At the food bank, Sorors worked on an assembly line packing bags for a local food distribution. Approximately 200 bags were packed for families and individuals. After packing bags, Sorors were directed to their next task which would be in the warehouse. The food bank receives donations of all kinds. The donations are placed in large wire bins. Sorors and the other volunteers were charged with the task of taking everything out of the bins and packing the items into boxes so that the items would be ready for future distribution. Sorors teamed up on the bins. Some packed, some taped and other labeled the boxes. It was the goal to get everything in the bins boxed. Sorors along with the other volunteers were successful in boxing up almost everything. The Volunteer Coordinators were pleased with the work that was accomplished and thanked everyone for coming. Gamma Sorors were pleased to have been able to help out and look

forward to returning to the Capital Area Food Bank.

Sorors Kimya Moore and Denise Carter-McCormick sort and pack in the warehouse of the Capital Food Bank.

SSoror Kimberly Morgan-Craft hard at work at Capital Food Bank

Sorors Adrienne Hector and Angela Homer empty storage bins at Capital Food Bank.

Gamma Sorors and friend of Gamma at Capital Food Bank

Winter 2010 Gamma Gazette, Page 3 Volume 4, Issue 1

Sisterhood/Membership Highlights

RUSH for Spring 2011 was held on Saturday, November 13, 2010 at the Shepard Park Library. Soror Kimberly Morgan-Craft, Dean of Intake, led the formal RUSH. Ten interested ladies attended and received information on Iota on a national and local level. Candidates submitted the required material and were interviewed in early December. Stay tuned to see who the newest additions will be.

ADP Angela Homer gives Iota history to RUSH attendees

Gamma Sorors Lynn Gilbert, Kimya Moore, Kim Dickerson Daniels-Solano and RUSH attendees

Gamma Sorors surround their guests at the RUSH

RUSH attendees listen attentively

Winter 2011

Sorors sit in support at RUSH for spring 2011

Gamma Gazette, Page 4 Volume 4, Issue 1

GAMMA CELEBRATES THE HOLIDAYS!

On December 19, 2010, Gamma celebrated the season at their annual holiday party. The party was held at the beautiful home of Soror Erica Walker. Soror Walker graciously opened her home to Gamma

members, guests and friends of Gamma. Gamma members and guests shared an evening of fun, food and fellowship. The Green Turtle game was played, and a great time was had by all in attendance.

Sorors Cory Milam, Adrienne Birdine and Kimya Moore Gamma Sorors and guest Kappa Chapter member, Tangila Sanders

Party hostess Soror Eric Walker and Soror Nicole Gray show Iota love.

Soror Maxine Samms Washington strikes a pose with her gift.

Winter 2010 Gamma Gazette, Page 5 Volume 4, Issue 1

American Education Week 2010

Gamma Chapter enjoyed a rewarding and productive 2010 American Education Week. Suitland High School located in Prince Georges County, MD welcomed the Gamma Chapter with open arms. We coordinated our activities with the Business Department Chair, Ms. Joyce Perkinson, who very graciously welcomed us with open arms. The theme was “Great Public Schools: A Basic Right and Our Responsibility.” The Gamma Chapter took this responsibility seriously with a number of activities with and for the students and teachers. Activities for the week included:

BreakfastTeachers of the Business Department enjoyed breakfast and great conversation with Sorors Mariama Davis, Maxine Samms Washington, Sonia Harris and Nicole Gray. Breakfast was provided by Gamma Chapter before classes began for the day.

Backpack DonationTen backpacks were donated to needy students of Suitland High school filled with school supplies. The backpacks and school supplies were donated by sorors of the Gamma Chapter.

Classroom VisitsSorors Kimberly Dickerson Daniels-Solano, Sonia Harris, Vonetta Martin and Maxine Samms Washington, visited with two Entrepreneurship classes to discuss owning and operating your own business. These sessions involved a pleasant dialogue in which the sorors discussed why and how they started their own businesses. They offered advice and answered questions posed by the students. Both the students and the sorors seemed to enjoy these sessions.

American Education Week Essay ContestStudents were asked to write a 500 word essay on the topic: “If you owned your own business, what would it be and how would it benefit the community in this economic climate?” After careful judging, two winners were selected. The first place winner was Salimah Latif. She received a $100 American Express gift card, and our second place winner, Darnell Lisby received a $50 American Express gift card.

Soror Kim speaks to Entrepreneurship class.

Sorors Nicole, Maxine, Mariama and Sonia pictured with Business Department Chair Joyce Perkinson

Soror Kim speaks to an Entrepreneurship class.

Sorors Vonetta, Maxine, Sonia and Kim pose after speaking to an Entrepreneurship class.

Sorors Nicole donates one of ten backpacksSorors Nicole, Maxine, Mariama and Sonia pictured with Business Department Chair Joyce Perkinson

Soror Kim speaks to an Entrepreneurship class.Soror Kim speaks to an Entrepreneurship class.Soror Kim speaks to an Entrepreneurship class.Soror Kim speak sto an Entrepreneurship class.Sorors Nicole, Maxine, Mariama and Sonia pictured

with Business Department Chair Joyce Perkinson

Soror Kim speak sto an Entrepreneurship class.

Sorors Vonetta, Maxine, Sonia and Kim pose after speaking to an Entrepreneurship class.

Sorors Nicole donates one of ten backpacks

Teachers of the business department enjoy breakfast.

Sorors Maxine and Sonia speak to an Entrepreneurship class.

Soror Kim speak sto an Entrepreneurship class.Soror Kim speak sto an Entrepreneurship class.

Soror Nicole donates one of ten back- Sorors Vonetta, Maxine, Sonia and Kim after Sorors Nicole, Maxine, Mariama and Soniapacks to Suitland High School student. speaking to Entrepreneurship class. with Business Dept. Chairperson, Joyce Perkinson

Winter 2010 Gamma Gazette, Page 6 Volume 4, Issue 1 American Heart Month: February Means Heart Disease Awareness

The month of February is

dedicated to raising

awareness about heart

disease and increasing

knowledge about prevention.

Did you know that in the

United States, one woman

dies every minute from a

cardiovascular event? Yet

coronary heart disease is still

considered by many as a

“man’s disease.”

Reality check:

1 in 4 women in the United

State die from heart disease,

while 1 in 30 die from breast

cancer. 23% of women will

die within one year of having a

heart attack. Within six years

of having a heart attack, about

46% of women become

disabled with heart failure.

Two thirds of women who

have a heart attack fail to

make a full recovery.

The good news is that all

women can take steps to

lower their risk of developing

heart disease. Research show

that women can lower their

heart disease risk by as much

as 82% simply by leading a

healthy lifestyle. The

“Guidelines for Preventing

Cardiovascular Disease in

Women” were produced in

2007. Some of the advice

includes:

Lifestyle changes to help lower

blood pressure, including

weight control, increased

physical activity, alcohol

moderation, sodium

restriction, increased intake of

fresh fruits, vegetables and

eating low-fat dairy products.

Try to quit smoking.

Minimum of 60-90 minutes of

moderate activity (for example

brisk walking) most days of

the week for women who need

to lose weight or sustain weigh

loss.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Black History Month Quiz

1. Who told the Senate Armed Services Committee in 1948 that he would urge black youths to resist the draft unless discrimination was banned?2. What was the only Southern state to permit slave enlistments in the military in 1780?3. What was the first Black-owned company to be traded on the New York Stock Exchange?4. Who was the first African American car manufacturer in 1916?5. What was the first all-Black religious denomination in the United States?6. Which European nation was the first to stop trading African slaves to the United States in 1794?7. Who organized the 1941 exhibition, "Afro-American Art on Both Continents," which included the works of Romare Bearden and the Delaney Brothers?8. Name the author who wrote The Third Life of Grange Copeland, published in 1970?9. Who was the three time Super Bowl champion player who returned to his Florida alma mater to receive his bachelor's degree in 1996?10. Who wrote the script for the 1975 hit, Cooley High?11. Denzel Washington played in what 1981 Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Charles Fuller?

12. Who was the only other black actress to win the Academy Award's Best Supporting Actress Oscar since Hattie McDaniel in 1939?13. Who sang Martin Luther King, Jr.'s favorite gospel song, "Precious Lord, Take My Hand," after his funeral procession in 1968?14. When did James Del Rio become the first African American mortgage banker? 1953?  1976?  1989?  1947?15. In 1990 the Mystery Writers of America nominated this novel, written by Walter Mosley, as best of the year.16. By the eighteenth century, what colony was the leader in the slave trade?17. In what year did Harriet Tubman escape from slavery?18.  Name an African American enterprise that you patronize.19. During the nineteenth century, how many states had laws prohibiting interracial marriage?20. Which state east of the Mississippi was the first to give African American women the right to vote, in 1913?

ANSWERS TO QUIZ 1.   A. Philip Randolph

2.   Maryland3.   BET Holdings

Sorors Nicole, Maxine, Mariama and Sonia pictured with Business Department Chair Joyce PerkinsonSorors Nicole, Maxine, Mariama and Sonia pictured with Business Department Chair Joyce Perkinson

4.   Frederick Douglass Patterson5.   The African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME)6.   France7.   Alain Locke8.   Alice Walker9.    Emmitt Smith10.  Eric Monte

Winter 2010 Gamma Gazette, Page 7

11.  A Soldier's Story12.  Whoopi Goldberg13.  Mahalia Jackson14.  195315.  Devil in a Blue Dress

16.  Rhode Island17.  184918.  [You provide]19.  Thirty-eight20.  Illinois

Volume 4, Issue 1

 

BIRTHDAYS *** ANNIVERSARIES *** MILESTONES (WINTER SEASON)

BIRTHDAYS: IOTA ANNIVERSARIESMaxine Samms Washington January 17 Nydia Coleman

January 11Jean East January 22 Vonetta Martin

January 11Nydia Coleman February 2 Adrienne Birdine

March 26Gloria Moser February 14Robyn Barringer February 18Melba Eldridge-Lewis February 21Vonetta Martin March 13

PUBLICATION DEADLINES

October 1 for Fall Edition (activities held during July through September)January 1 for Winter edition (activities held during October through December)

April 1 for Spring edition (activities held during January through March)July 1 for Summer edition (activities held during April through June)

Would you like to be featured? Do you have some advice or a delicious recipe to share? Send your typed submission to Chapter Journalist, Soror Denise Carter-

McCormick, via email at journalist@iota-gammadc.org.

Copyright © 2011 Gamma Chapter of Iota Phi Lambda Sorority, Inc. – All Rights Reserved.

Winter 2010 Gamma Gazette, Page 8 Volume 4, Issue 1

Events to be Highlighted in our next issue of the Gamma Gazette

1st Annual Helen Newberry McDowell Scholarship Prayer BreakfastSecond Annual Black History Month Essay Competition

FIL Field Trip to Great Blacks in Wax MuseumPinning Ceremony

New Member Induction

LOOKING AHEAD

April 7-10, 201174th Eastern Regional Conference

Radisson Lord Baltimore HotelBaltimore, MD

TRAVEL WITH GAMMA

Need travel? Want to take a cruise?Need hotel accommodations?

Travel with Gamma to make your arrangements!Visit http://www.travelwithgamma.com.

_

Gamma Chapter Officers 2010-2011

President Adrienne R. Birdine1st Vice President D. Lynn Gilbert

2nd Vice President Nicole D. DrayRecording Secretary Angela M. Homer

Corresponding Secretary Tira N. OliverTreasurer Cory D. MilamFinancial Secretary Maxine Samms-WashingtonJournalist* S. Denise Carter-McCormickMembership Chair Kimberly L. Morgan Craft

*Special thanks to Delcenia E. Julien for serving as Journalist for the first half of the year.

Gamma ChapterIota Phi Lambda Sorority Inc.

Post Office Box 75985Washington, DC 20013

gamma@iota-gammadc.orghttp://www.iota-gammadc.org

Winter 2010 Gamma Gazette, Page 9 Volume 4, Issue 1