History of Beta Omega Chapter of Kappa Alpha Theta During Its Organization

Back in 1931 when the number of Kappa Alpha Thetas in Colorado Springs had finally grown to the great extent of six or seven, the alumnae began meeting for lunch once or twice a month, just for the sociability of the occasion. Avis Chase brought the group together first, those meeting with her being Mrs. Irvine Christopher, Mrs. Joyce Miller, Mrs. H.G. Wilcox, Mrs. Robert Newman, Mrs. Truman St. Clair, and Mrs. George LeCrone. Many pleasant luncheons were enjoyed--sometimes in homes but more often downtown, thus allowing a restaurant chef to bear all responsibility. This group had no purpose other than pleasure in mind when organizing.

So it was quite a surprise when the members of Contemporary Club at Colorado College called on some of this Theta group to tell them that a survey of the college recommended that sororities be brought on the campus and that on May 13,1931, the trustees had decided to allow the literary clubs to investigate petitioning for charters. However, the societies could not actually petition a sorority until the following September.

Since the Contemporary girls knew nothing whatsoever about sororities, they bought a copy of Baird's Manual, the bluebook of fraternities and sororities. It listed Kappa Alpha Theta, Pi Beta Phi, and Kappa Kappa Gamma as the top three. Hypatia was considering petitioning Kappa Kappa Gamma, and since Elsie and Jean had distant Theta relatives, it seemed to be Kappa Alpha Theta for Contemporary. One or two of the girls had the bright idea of inquiring into two sororities, with the supposition that if they petitioned only one they might be left without any. However, a convenient lack of memory by one of the officers kept this letter of inquiry from ever being mailed, as it was discovered later when it fell from a coat pocket. If Theta had not been interested, we wonder how it would have affected the lives of most of you gathered here now.

Grand Council of Kappa Alpha Theta nor the group in Colorado Springs gave very much encouragement to the Colorado College girls. There had not been a new chapter for ten years and the Colorado chapters were not interested in expanding in the state. However, the Contemporaries were not to be daunted and sent a continual stream of letters to Mrs. Purd B. Wright, Grand Vice President, who was in charge of expansion. Finally, but without giving them any hope, Mrs. Wright told the girls to find out the total number of girls who would be interested in becoming members of Theta.

Impetus was again added to Contemporary's correspondence with Mrs. Wright when Delta Gamma granted a charter to Minerva society in May, 1932. Mrs. Wright replied to the latest letter with the statement that before another chapter could even be considered in Colorado, recommendation would have to be made by state thetas. Therefore, an inspection tea was arranged.

The old observatory, Contemporary's club house, buzzed with activity. Chairs were repainted, furniture recovered, and a shine put on the whole place; but it still looked like a jailhouse to the tremulous girls standing at the door to greet the out of town Thetas. One of the girls said later that she had never seen such an important meeting turn out so screamingly funny. The story of it from her diary reads-

"The Theta group from Denver was small - all young, with one exception, Mrs. Smith, a very forceful, mannishly dressed woman. Mrs. Smith, perhaps, took on a more awesome aspect as it was whispered to some of us by a very charmingly plump little matron as she entered, that Mrs. Smith's favorable impression was the one to be secured.

Mrs. Smith took control control immediately. We chatted amiably (though inwardly in extreme discomfiture) for some minutes. Then in a brisk voice, while glancing with eagle eye over our shabby put greatly loved little domicile, Mrs. Smith asked, 'Just what do you have to offer Theta?' Well, we were ready for that. Marjorie pulled out her list, consisting of the activities of each member, and really I was impressed- I hadn't realized we had so many extra curricular activities and so many Phi Bets, four in number. When the list was finished, Mrs. Smith offered, 'You girls must be about perfect.' Naturally, after a remark like that we didn't know what to say or do. It sounded pretty bad. After after a little more chatter, Mrs. Smith offered shyly, 'not seeing any ashtrays I presume you don't smoke. Do you mind bringing me a saucer?' Whereupon she whipped out a seven inch cigarette holder and started smoking. We hesitated pulling out the ashtrays after giving the impression of wholesome girlhood. But her remark upon seeing them set us all laughing, 'Thank God, you're human in spite of all the campus offices and Phi Bets!' From then on we were at ease and had a wonderful time at our own party. When the Thetas left, Mrs. Smith warned that we should never hid cigarettes under seat cushions or behind pictures, as they might get crushed. Also, she left the parting word that she would love to see each and every one of us a Theta!

We restrained our emotions until the guests were safely out the door - but they had returned for a forgotten glove or purse, I'm sure they would have thought we were better material for a circus with all the acrobatics going on."

After the encouragement received from the tea, the Contemporary girls waited in suspense for the Theta National Convention to be held at Estes Park, in June, 1932. The memorable day for Beta Omega Chapter was June 28, when a telegram was received by Contemporary informing they had been passed on. The announcement also contained an invitation, practically a command--to appear at the Theta convention for the last night entertainment. This was to be a banquet and a costume party. Eight of the twelve Contemporaries packed their most glamorous formals, which they were to wear to be distinguishable from the Thetas in costume, and set out for Estes Park by automobile. They were met by the Colorado Springs Thetas who had been able to secure a cabin for them. Margaret Miller, Augusta LeCrone, and Gertrude Newman took the excited girls up to the Stanley Hotel where they were registered, introduced to Grand Council and the then only living founder Betty Locke Hamilton. Seeing the youthful light in the eyes of the little old lady, they wondered if, as charter members of this new chapter, they would have enough love for it to be going back to conventions when they were eighty years old.

At the banquet, each girl had to stand for an introduction and a list of her activities, read by the President, Jean Johnson. The party after dinner, a typical western party with gambling and a hold-up so realistic as to cause two girls to faint, was the inspiration for Beta Omega's first rush party at Black Forest, only the fainting occurred when it was discovered that one of the rushees had been left in town.\

Installation of the sixty-third chapter of Kappa Alpha Theta took place September 1-3, 1932, which was the sixty-third year of Theta itself. During the summer, after convention, letters were sent to all the graduate alumnae of Contemporary Club inviting them to return to Colorado College and be initiated into Beta Omega as charter members. Forty-four accepted for the installation initiation, and fifteen returned later in the year to become members. There were twelve actives initiated.

Mrs. Purd B. Wright, Grand Vice President, was in charge of installation, with Mrs. George Banta, Grand President, Mrs. Curry Carroll, President of District V, and Mrs. W.C. Weaver, Deputy to the Grand Treasurer, assisting in pledge and initiation services.

Colorado Springs alumnae had been working with the undergraduate group for more than a month to be sure that all parts of the program would run smoothly. (A little rushing was accomplished on the side, too.) There were infinite lists to be made and checked and re-checked; publicity to be written and sent to Denver, Pueblo, and Colorado Springs papers; letters to be written to the installing officer; arrangements for housing to be made for visiting Thetas and delegates; invitations to be sent to Thetas in Colorado; invitations for the formal installation to be sent to the Colorado College faculty, sororities and fraternities, and townspeople; plans made for social functions--and so on and on. Songs had to be learned by the girls and the alumnae, and the fraternity examination had to be given to every person before initiation. In spite of all this previous work and planning, Colorado Springs Thetas were much too busy, after installation actually began, running errands between town and Broadmoor, to participate very much in the services. However, each did get in initiation for a short time for it was a distinct privilege to attend a service conducted by Margaret Banta and Grand Council, with Grand Council's own initiating paraphernalia. It was a fitting consummation of all their work for these girls to be initiated in such an inspiring way.

There were several social functions interspersed with the formal ceremonies. One dinner was held at Stratton Park Inn, there were numerous group breakfasts and luncheons, a picnic, and the formal tea was Saturday at the home of Mrs. Harold Ingersoll in Broadmoor. The formal installation banquet was in the green room at the hotel on Saturday night. Mrs. Wright was toastmistress, the welcome was given by Mrs. Carroll, with response by Mrs. St. Clair and Jean Johnson. Mrs. Banta gave the closing toast.

Following the banquet a formal chapter meeting was conducted by the Grand Officers for the new members of Kappa Alpha Theta.

No sooner was the excitement of installation over, than this handful of busy girls and women were plunged into what was probably the most hectic "rush week" in the history of the college. There had not been time to form a Pan-Hellenic organization and the new ideas gleaned from national officers had to be modified by the girls in view of the fact that the pledge day was not until three weeks after the college opened. Rush parties were scheduled as often as the new Thetas could arrange them; and in between times it was necessary to see the rushees constantly lest they be left to the clutches of the other new sororities- at class, in the dorms, getting dates for them, invitations to actives' homes for dinner, to spend the night, and so forth. There were six parties scheduled: a tea, a picnic, a breakfast, two dinners, and a dance. Some of the Denver and Boulder Thetas came down to help the new girls at a few of these parties.Being experienced in the routine, they helped to make a good impression on the rushees.

The breakfast was one that will stand out forever in the minds of those charter members of Beta Omega. To be very elegant, they decided to serve waffles. At the appointed time all the irons brought from homes were plugged in--but nothing happened. The Great number of them had blown all the fuses in the house. There ensued a frantic rush around town on that Sunday morning to find fuses, to no avail, - and finally to gather up enough bread and eggs for the party. Meanwhile, the burnt cork colored waiters sang themselves hoarse and worked so hard to be jolly that their color was well streaked, and everyone got hungrier and hungrier!

But the new chapter must have made a good impression at their other parties, because after it was all over they had ten grand new girls, a good sized pledge class for those days.

Although Theta was not the first group chartered on the campus, they were determined to have their pledge class be the first one initiated. So those poor pledges, who were worn out from three weeks of rushing, were whipped through their pledge training in another three weeks. The early initiation was made possible by the fact that pledging was not allowed until the sophomore, and luckily, that year at least, the grades of the previous year were the basis for initiation.

With four national groups on the campus the Panhellenic organization became a necessity. It gathered laws and practices from other campuses for both rushing and inter-fraternity relationships. Panhellenic decided it would be better to rush girls as freshmen than as sophomores, so, to take care of the freshmen who had not been pledged in the fall, there came another rush week at the beginning of second semester. Some rush rules had been formed and rushing was confined to a few days and was very similar to that practiced now, except that there were more infractions of rush rules by all the groups. It was just hard to get used to the changes.

Almost as soon as Beta Omega had its first meeting and its first rush party, the girls discovered that their small house, which had always been a source of great pride, was entirely inadequate for the needs of the enlarged group. Apparently all the new sororities felt the same, for they all began to think of new houses. Since the old Observatory was owned by the college, Beta Omega looked around for a spot for a brand new house, while the other groups made plans to enlarge theirs. Again, the alumnae in town were called upon for the countless details of arranging a long-term lease for the use of the lad belonging to the college; deciding, with the architect, the type of house and necessary size and number of rooms, and color schemes, furniture and fixtures, and above all, the method of financing the new house. Many letters were required, to national officers to obtain details about the limits on borrowing money; and to parents and alums to sell shares in their newly formed non-profit corporation, to obtain the cash for the initial payment. Several of the fathers of Thetas earned our eternal thanks for their contributions of time, interest and special business and legal knowledge. The new year ground was broken for the new lodge. This was before college closed in the spring of 1934. It was indeed a thrill to know that by the next rush week Beta Omega would be the only group on the campus to return to a completely new house.

As well as helping the chapter with its new lodge, Grand Council sent a graduate student to spend a year in training the officers in their duties and organizing the chapter on a really firm basis of true Theta standards and traditions.