Why I love bid day

It’s January 15th, and it is bid day at Epsilon Lambda, where we welcomed 31 new members! It’s also the third bid day I have gotten to experience during my year as a CDC, and let me tell you – it never gets old.

Obviously, I have to share my bid day highlight – bid day 2010 at the University of Georgia, when my sister and I became “sisters times two.” Following a long two weeks as vp: membership, I was so excited to see my for real little sister, Amanda, walk off the bus and onto the Delta Gamma front lawn.

I love bid day because, to me, it is the epitome of everything our Fraternity stands for. Bid day, as it turns out, is all about friendship. It is a celebration of new beginnings – of women joining an organization which will give them memories, bridesmaids, best friends – and a celebration of renewal and rededication. At bid day, women who are already members are reminded of the purpose of the organization they have already pledged themselves to. They grow closer to those they have already made connections with, and expand their circle of friendship to include new women who share their interests and values.

It is a night full of smiles (and tears of happiness, if you are like me), of excitement, of relief. Adding new members to our organizations is why we exist, and while the process of getting there might be stressful at times, the result is always worth the stress and hard work it took to get there.

The purpose of Greek life is often debated; members will argue our purpose is philanthropy or scholarship or leadership. While all of those things are true, I believe my founders (and those of other Greek organizations) formed their club simply because they were friends, and they wanted to find others who valued the same things they did. Friendship, above all else, is what Greek life offers. Philanthropy, scholarship, leadership – all of these things are achieved through genuine friendship arising from mutual respect of one another.

I have another bid day to look forward to this semester (at Beta Sigma-Maryland!), and I am already looking forward to the smiles, the screams, the songs, and the tears.